Bitten and Smitten
by Wendy McCalister
Summary: Ever since her 17th birthday, Botan's been running from them, and now comes this red haired and emerald eyed guy who claims he's there to protect her. He would've seemed nice, if it weren't for those sharp fangs poking out of his mouth...
1. Chapter 1

**Bitten and Smitten**

 **Summary: Ever since her 17** **th** **birthday, Botan's been running from them, and now… comes this red-haired emerald eyed guy who is actually the same as they are who claims he's there to protect her. He would've seemed nice, if it weren't for those sharp fangs poking out of his mouth…**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho.**

 **Chapter 1**

Botan couldn't remember how long she had been running but her legs really hurt. She cursed her luck, and for a moment, thought if she had followed Keiko and Yukina to the goukon, maybe this wouldn't have happened. She had always disliked those kind of meetings, which was why she declined when Keiko had invited her, but if she had known things would turn out this way, she would've gone without hesitation.

She hadn't even reached halfway to her apartment, when those _things_ suddenly appeared. What else could she have done? She ran as fast as she could, never bothering to look back and only kept on running and running.

It almost felt like hours, but she finally arrived at the door of her apartment. No one seemed to be around, and that only succeeded on making her even more afraid. She fumbled through her school bag for her apartment keys, her hands shaking and her legs felt like jello from all the running.

Sure enough, Botan heard a loud thud behind her, as if something just landed on the ground, causing her to let out a gasp and her eyes widened in terror.

"Kikikiki…" An eerie and cynical voice chuckled, "Ah look, the little human is scared… I can smell her fear… Oh, this is so exciting, this is so exciting!" he cackled.

"Why don't you give in, little girl…? You have nowhere to escape," another voice said, different but still not less terrifying as the first one that spoke.

She didn't turn around, despite the loud thumping of her heart as the voices continued to taunt her. 'Come on, come on… Where are they?!' she screamed frantically in her head, all the while praying that her keys didn't accidentally fall when she was running. She **really** didn't need this right now. Oh why did the heavens have to punish her like this?

Thankfully, as soon as she heard footsteps walking towards her, her fingers felt a familiar item. 'I found it!' her mind yelled in victory, relief overcoming her… but only for a second when she suddenly felt a hot breath at her throat…

It only took her a fraction of a second to realize what it was, and she turned around hastily, dropping her school bag and grudgingly also her apartment keys in the process. Her back was pressed against the door, as the two dangerous beings cornered her.

Botan's eyes shut close; was this the end? All this time, ever since her birthday last month, she had been avoiding them and running away… was this how everything's going to end? Were her efforts until now futile? She knew it. She could never hide from them forever.

She waited for something horrible to happen, like the pain of fangs digging into her skin or something… But nothing came, confusing her and she slowly opened her eyes. It took her a moment to blink away the blurriness so she could clear her vision, but when she did… she was greeted by the grosteque sight of a boy, seemingly her age, red haired and emerald eyed, holding two heads disconnected from their bodies in each of his hand. It wasn't that hard to figure out that those were the heads of the vampires that had been hunting her all night.

However, she didn't feel even the slightest bit safer, as her eyes widened in realization… That boy wasn't normal, he could kill them in a split second… That meant…

"Tch," the boy tsked, "What a…"

Whatever he said was drowned by the sound of Botan's ear piercing shriek, causing him to let go of the heads so that he could cover his ears. His face contorted in pain, and his eyebrows furrowed in frustration as the loud noise nearly damaged his ear drums.

"What the hell?!"

Botan reached for the apartment keys and her school bag as fast as she could, inserting the key into the keyhole, and unlocking the door, before swiftly turning the doorknob and went inside… She attempted to close the door, but her efforts were to no avail, as a hand stopped her from doing so. She looked up to see emerald eyes glaring down at her coldly, sending a shiver down a spine. Botan gasped and tried to pull the door close, but the boy proved to be stronger – as expectedly – than her, and pulled the door open. Thankfully, the wooden material didn't break or anything under the brute force he used as he did so.

"Woman…" he growled, his blood dripping nails sharpening into claws, indicating his anger. "I saved you, and this is what I get?!"

Botan was surprised by his words, not expecting him to say that, of all things. When she saw his claws, she thought he would tear her limbs apart, but the boy seemed to be trying to control his wrath and merely glowered at her.

Her shock died soon after though, surprisingly and quickly replaced by her own irritation instead. "I-I didn't ask you to, y-you idiot!" she cried back in an indignant voice. She didn't realize what she just said until her eyes widened, and a hand flew to her mouth. What was she doing? The guy was a vampire, for god's sake! What good would she achieve by antagonizing him?

"I-I'm so—" Her apology didn't manage to leave her lips, as a callous hand roughly tugged at her elbow. It took her a moment to get over her shock by the boy's sudden actions, but when she did, she realized he held back his strength as she only felt a sharp pain at her shoulder, despite the fact he could break her bones easily. "W-wha—"

Her amethyst eyes locked with his cold emerald ones all of a sudden, silencing her in an instant as he pulled her dangerously close to him, filling her heart with fear once more. Great, now he's going to kill her…

"Don't… you ever…" the boy threatened, only to stop mid way when he noticed her body was shaking. His eyes softened slightly, as he finally let go of her. He watched as the girl's terrified expression turned to look of a mixture of bewilderment and distrust, as if she was wary of him and what he might do, but curious as to what he was up to at the same time. Her eyes silently asked him what he was going to do to her, but he didn't justify her question with a reply, and merely slid his hands into his pockets, and walked away, although she could've sworn she heard a low mutter under his breath, "Humans sure are weak…"

Botan stared at him as he opened the door to her bedroom, giving her a small and brief glance before entering and shouting out at her, "You're not gonna leave the door open are you? You're going to invite more vampires to come in," and that was all he said, before he closed the door to her bedroom, leaving a confused Botan staring at the spot where he once stood.

'W-wha-!' Her confusion was soon replaced with annoyance. 'Who the hell does he think he is coming in and going into my room like that? Why that-' her mind came into a halt as his earlier words suddenly interrupted her chain of thoughts. She huffed, before walking towards the door. Well, he's right, after all…

* * *

Botan slammed the door open, her arms crossed and her face wearing a ticked off expression as she stared at the vampire who was lounging on her bed, as if this was his room. She glared, but he remained unresponsive to her heated stares.

"What are you doing?" she finally asked after a few moments.

"Making myself at home in my new home, of course," he answered nonchalantly, without a care in the world and as if his reply didn't seem at all weird.

"Huh?!" came Botan's loud scream, causing the red haired vampire to once again close his ears, but she ignored his reaction and merely stomped her way to the bed, before taking hold of the collar of his black turtle neck shirt, "What the hell do you mean by your new home? Just because you saved me that didn't mean—"

She was cut off. "Ah, right, I should mention about your contract—"

"What contract? I didn't sign any goddamn contra—"

"Right. I should rephrase that. Sorry, my bad. I mean, the contract your great grandfather made with—"

"HUH?!"

He let out a loud, exasperated sigh, and scratched the back of his not so scratchy head, all the while wondering why the girl couldn't speak in a lower volume. "Like I said, the contract your great—"

"I know that!" Botan loudly exclaimed in frustration, practically on the verge of pulling her hair out of their roots. And to think, just a minute ago, she was so scared of him… "But what contract are you talking about?"

There was a moment of silence, before his mouth formed an 'o' and he punched his palm. "Ah, so you don't know!"

"Isn't that obvious?!"

"I thought Shinji at least told you… or not, your mother…."

"Really, what are you talking about?" Botan gave him a deadpanned look.

"You see, it's like this…" the redhead got up from his lying position on the bed, and crossed his legs indian style. "Your family is known to have a really unique blood, overflowing with power that gives any vampires who drink it more strength than any other vampires. Because of the blood flowing through your veins, many vampires want to get a hand on your blood to achieve their darkest desires, and to overpower other vampires."

"W-what—I-I don't get what you're saying… My family is nothing like you just said. My mom is an average woman, and I'm a normal—"

"A normal girl?" he cut her short before she could finish. With a tilt of his head, the boy's emerald eyes seemed to bore into her soul as the words that left his lips cut through her, "In what way are you normal, Botan? You've been chased by our kind almost every night for a month now… what makes you so normal?"

"I-I—" Botan seemed to try to make excuses, uncaring of how he knew her name despite the fact she didn't even tell him

"Don't deny it!" he barked at her, as if demanding her to stop talking back at him. It worked, as Botan bit her lip, trying to hold herself back from saying anything else in spite of how she had a lot of things to say… Really, what was he going on about? Blood? Contract? What was this? What was going on? For years, she had been living a normal life… yet why now—

"W-why…?" the question left her lips before she knew it, surprising the redhead and even herself at her own words, but she continued anyway, "W-why now? Why not last year? Why not when I was a baby?! Why is all this…"

"You're seventeen, aren't you?"

"So what?"

"Each child of each generation have their power awakened in their blood at the age of seventeen. When they reach seventeen years old, that's when…" he stopped halfway, knowing she understood what he was saying.

Botan's hands curled into small fists, as her body started shaking. Was this for real? If so, why didn't her mom and dad say anything? Why did they have to keep her in the dark? Why did she have to find out this way? Why? "Then… why did my great grandfather sign a contract with you?"

Emerald eyes stared at her, as if looking deep inside her soul. He could tell that she was confused, and perhaps angered by the fact no one told her anything… It took him a moment before he finally replied,

"To protect each child of each generation."

"Protect?" Botan's eyes narrowed slightly. "What the hell do you mean protect?! It's your kind that…"

"It was… probably stupid to ask a vampire for protection, especially if you're trying to protect yourself from the same kind you asked protection from… even risking to sign a contract where you would have to let the vampire drink your blood in exchange… but your great grandfather wanted to protect his descendants… He didn't want the power in your family's blood to fall into the wrong hands… and that was why he made the contract with me," he said, without taking his eyes off of her as she stared back at him with now wide eyes. Standing up, he sauntered calmly towards the girl even as she stepped back everytime he took a step forward towards her.

"You hear that? I made a contract with your great grandfather. To savor the sweet taste of your rare blood, I agreed to protect your family, for this generation and the next. For as long as I live I'd be your own personal bodyguard, until you die…" Botan's back pressed against the cold, hard surface of her bedroom wall, and she shut her eyes tight, her heart thumping loudly in her chest, and flinching at the feeling of sharp claws tracing down from her cheek to her neck, careful enough not to dig to deep to break the skin, but it was enough to send shivers down her spine, "and for as long as I live, I'd get to drink your blood, over and over again… something which most vampires are desperate for."

For a moment, his fingers lingered at the skin of her neck, as if he'd dug deep into it, and suck her blood from his hands, only to move up to cup her chin, forcing her to open her eyes in surprise and meet his gaze. There was something strange in his eyes, that made her want to push him away but couldn't, as if he was torn apart from sucking her blood right then and there, or kiss her to release some of the hurt she felt right now.

"Your mother and father, especially your father… probably didn't want to tell you anything because they were trying to protect you themselves."

"T-they're divorced," Botan squeaked all of a sudden, earning a chuckle from the vampire in return.

"Divorced, yes, but for a reason. Your father was the child of his generation, and your mother married him because she loved him – granted, that is true. But," his face bent down, the distance between his lips and hers only a few inches, as he closed his eyes to savor the sweet smell of her scent, the blood inside her tempting him, calling him to plunge his fangs into her throat… but he chose to linger at her mouth instead, "it seems she didn't like how I was always there with your father, and she also didn't like the fact that one day you would have to endure a life different than the one she wanted you to live… She wanted you to live a normal life, like any other average girl, and for one reason or another, she decided to divorce with your father, so she could take you away from the life you would have to live when you reach seventeen… Quite naïve and tragic, if I must say, as there's no way you could escape… No matter where you go, she should've known vampires would hunt you down everywhere, and it would've been safer if she stayed with me and your father, but I suppose your mother thought she did the right thing. I don't blame her, that's love for you after all."

"Mom…" came Botan's low, almost teary whisper. Her eyes started to water, "I-I didn't know… and what of dad? H-his death… was it really a car accident or did a vampire…"

"Ha!" the redhead scoffed, "It _was_ a car accident, did you really think I wouldn't be able to rescue him from any vampire that might want to take his life? He's dead because he was careless in driving, his death had nothing to do with me. I mean, how the heck would I lose to any vampire? I mean, I have the best food that would give me more power than others!"

"You vampires…" Botan sighed under her breath, shaking her head as she knew what he meant. It wasn't until she noticed something poking out of his collar, that she blinked. Hands reaching up, she pulled the collar down a little and saw words… Like a tattoo or something that said;

"Kurama…" she mumbled the word. "Is that your name?"

"What else would it be?" Kurama gave her a snappy response.

"You know, you should've told me earlier what your name was… I mean, after all, I'm basically your mistress."

"Yeah, yeah whatever. I was going to tell you after I finish explaining the whole thing."

"Mom and dad… they're both gone now. They've both passed away… they're not here for me anymore… of all times," Botan suddenly said, her voice shaky as she bit her lip and held back the tears that threatened to come out.

Kurama's eyes softened. "I know, but I'm here for you now. Things might be difficult from here on out, but you can surely count on me to be there for you whenever you need me."

"I didn't know vampires could be so sweet," Botan teased, feeling slightly better by his words.

Kurama's face turned as red as his hair. "W-wha—Shut up! This only happens once in a lifetime okay!"

She giggled in return, amused by his reactions, and this only served to make him turn redder. Still, she didn't realize she was still squished between him and the wall until she felt something touching her leg… Catching on to what it was, this time it was her turn to turn red, and she quickly pushed him away, suddenly embarrassed by the fact that he was so close to her for such a long time. "W-what are you doing?!"

"What are _you_ doing?" Kurama shot back, as he gave her an exasperated look. Seriously, he can't keep up with her easily changing moods. Just now she was crying, and then she was laughing, and the next she's angry… What is up with her?

Botan didn't give him any reply, and merely opened the door, before shoving him out. And it seemed Kurama was too surprised by her actions, as he didn't stop her even when he could've easily done so. "A-anyway, this is my room and if you're staying here, you're sleeping on the couch and… WAHH! Your hands, your hands!" she suddenly screamed bloody murder.

Kurama looked down at his hands, to see the red color tainting his fingers, almost dry. "Ah, blood, so what of it? Anyway, can't I stay in your room? I mean, it's really uncomfortable on the couch."

"NO!"

"Oh come on, Shinji let me sleep with him…"

"I said no, and it means no!"

"Tch, you're an annoying one, aren't you?" Kurama tsked, before looking down again at his hands, "So what do you want me to do actually?"

Her nose scrunched up in disgust. Wait, he was holding her with those hands… Her eyes widened before glaring daggers at the red haired vampire, "Wipe it off!" she demanded, before slamming the door shut, silencing him before he could say anything.

Botan's back pressed against the door, as she let out a heavy sigh.

Oh, she could just tell she could never return to her normal life ever again.

Especially now that she's got a blood sucking, sharp fanged, and nearly unbearable bodyguard accompanying her.


	2. Chapter 2

**Bitten and Smitten**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho.**

 **Chapter 2**

"Hello, Kurama," Botan greeted as soon as she came in her room, taking off her school jacket and putting her bag on the ground.

Kurama was unresponsive and just stared – or more like, glared – at his mistress. He was once again, like last night, lounging on her bed like it belonged to him. Except this time Botan didn't get angry or anything, and merely sighed at his behavior.

"Well? How long are you going to sulk?" she went on, but again, the vampire didn't acknowledge her, beside the fact that his glares seemed to intensify at her words. This received yet another sigh from Botan.

She didn't know she would come home to this. Earlier that morning, the redhead had requested (or was it order?) her to bring him with her to school, saying something like he should be with her anywhere she goes at all costs. He had briefly explained to her how myths about vampires are partly true, like the one where they die if they're exposed to the sun, but apparently in real world this only apply to weak vampires as stronger vampires, like him, have the ability to withstand the heat. Of course, Botan had straight up and denied him. Seriously, there was no way she was going to let him follow her everywhere. Plus, she didn't have club activities like the day before, meaning that she could go home early – while it was still in the day – so she didn't think Kurama's protection was needed at all, despite the fact she could've been targeted by a stronger vampire. After all, weaker vampires can't come out in the day, right? As expectedly, Kurama didn't deal well with her rejection. She thought when she'd see him again after school, his mood would've changed already, but perhaps she was wrong.

"Really, you are such a kid sometimes…" Botan muttered under her breath, and for once, Kurama finally gave her a retort, albeit not in a friendly way of course.

"Huh?!" He grabbed her head, and started shaking her, resulting in her yelling at him to stop before she would go dizzy. He ignored her of course, "Well, excuse me for worrying about your safety! Don't you know some stronger vampires could've chased you or something?! Huh, huh?! Seriously, you'd give me more trouble if anything were to happen to you!"

"Buuut… I'm saaaaaafee, riiight?" Botan dizzily replied.

Kurama blinked, before letting go of her head, realizing that maybe he shook her too much. He watched for a few moments as the girl mumbled something about everything's spinning, her eyes swirling before returning to normal, as she finally regained her composure.

"I'm safe, so there's no need for you to be so angry right?" she decided to continue where she left of, ignoring how a vein popped at Kurama's head at her 'disobedience' and lack of understanding on their current situation.

"What I'm trying to say is," Kurama tried to sound as sweet as possible, despite the fact his hands were itching to choke the girl. Really, if it wasn't for the contract… "that you could've endangered your life, did you really think strong vampires wouldn't be able to sense you? What if you—"

"Now now," Botan shrugged him off, waving her hands in front of her. "I'm alright, that's what matters, right?"

She took off her ponytail, not noticing the way Kurama was glaring daggers at her, and opened the door, before looking back at the vampire, with a sweet smile attached to her lips as she said, "I'm going to make us something to eat, what would you like? I'll make you anything you want, as long as you stop sulking."

Kurama's initial annoyance at how she just brushed him off like a speck of dust in the air, immediately dissipated as soon as he heard her words. His face brightened, almost like a child's, as he pointed at her neck, "Then can you let me suck—"

He didn't even get to finish his request when the door was slammed shut almost instantly.

* * *

"Thank you for the meal~!" Botan split her chopsticks as the words passed her lips, before dipping it into the cup ramen she had prepared. She started to dig in, only to stop when she looked up from her cup ramen, and saw that Kurama wasn't eating his. "What, you don't eat human food or something?" she asked, albeit a little muffled as she continued to chew on her food.

"That's not it," Kurama disagreed, "But I thought you were going to make us something? This isn't called cooking! You just pour hot water in this thing and wait for three minutes or so, right? Plus, this thing is unhealthy!" he grudgingly went on, pointing at his cup ramen everytime he said 'this thing'.

"It's called ramen, you know?" Botan merely answered back with her mouth still chewing, she didn't seem to listen to anything he said except when he kept pointing at the cup ramen like it was drugs or something.

"And stop talking with your mouth full, woman! Aren't you lacking on manners here?!" he shouted as he pointed a clawed finger at her.

Botan didn't seem at all threatened by his sharp claws that had apparently sharpened – probably from his irritation with her, and only continued to chow down on her cup ramen. It took her a few long moments before she finally swallowed, "Chill out, Kurama. It's not like you're going to die from eating it."

Kurama seemed to cool down a bit, especially when she regained some of her manners as she swallowed her food before she spoke to him. Still, he let out a small snort, before splitting his own chopsticks, "I'm only gonna eat this once. Next time, if you ever ask me to eat this… well, you're better be prepared," he glared at her as he said this.

She laughed. "Yeah yeah, whatever… As if you're going to hurt little ol' me. I mean, I'm the one you're supposed to be protecting!" To Kurama's utter annoyance, she started to laugh louder, eyes now teary from laughing too much.

Kurama's face seemed to redden at this, both in embarrassment and anger, at her teasing him and her lack of manners on the table. "Manners, woman! Manners!" he reprimanded her, despite the red color tinting his cheeks.

After a while, Botan finally stopped laughing, to Kurama's relief. She wiped away the tears at her eyes, and a smile formed at her mouth as she watched as Kurama ate his cup ramen. "You're not really as cold as other vampires, are you, Kurama?" she suddenly spoke.

The redheaded vampire in question looked up to meet her gaze, before swallowing on his ramen, and crossing his arms. "Well, you didn't know me when I first started this contract with your great grandfather. I was the one actually trying to hunt him down for his blood, you know?"

"EH?! Then how did he get you to agree with the contract?!"

"Now now, that's a story for another day," he replied jokingly, before his serious demeanor returned. Looking away to stare at the wall beside them, a smile slowly tugged at the corners of his lips. "I got to know him… and he was the one who taught me things, you know? I guess you could say that from knowing him, I grew soft. Just a little, though," he continued, bringing his thumb and index finger close as if to emphasize his point.

"Ohh…" Botan's mouth formed an 'o' in understanding.

"Seriously, your family bloodline… you guys tend to get softer with each generation," he suddenly mumbled under his breath, his voice barely audible, but Botan heard him, albeit she had to listen closely to catch on to what his words were.

"What do you mean?" she blurted out, and the redhead seemed surprise, as he turned to look at her with his emerald eyes blinking, as if he didn't think she actually heard him.

The shock died down a second after though. Leaning back in his chair, Kurama's eyes remained on the girl's curious face. 'That face… is so similar with Shinji's…' he thought for a moment, noting the similarities between her and his former master. When he noticed the look of confusion on her face – probably because he was staring at her, that was when he snapped out of his thoughts, realizing that Botan had just asked him a question. Looking away once again, he answered,

"Your great grandfather had a daughter of course… That's your grandmother, Hitomi. She… was quite the feisty one. When I used to stick around your great grandfather, she was always calling me names and telling me to stay away from him. She acted as if I'd steal away her father, and when he passed away, she had told me that she didn't need my assistance, she said and I quote, 'I don't need protection from the likes of you'! Honestly, she hated my guts… but I stayed with her, I was the one who gave her a shoulder to cry on, she'd always go seeking my comfort everytime she'd cried… And trust me, she cried a lot." He laughed at the last statement, but even so, Botan saw something in his eyes, almost as if he was remembering the past… looking so melancholic all of a sudden, like he missed her grandmother or something.

"Were you close friends?" Botan's question popped out from her mouth almost all too suddenly, surprising Kurama and pulling him out of memory lane. He looked at her, but by the time his gaze felled on her face, she was smiling down at the table for some reason. "I've never known my grandmother… She died when my father was a teenager, was what I heard. I wonder… what is she like? I mean, beside how she sounds like in what you said… Do I look like her?" she started to trace a finger on her face, biting her lip slightly, as if wondering if she was supposed to ask these questions. 'Kurama… looked really sad, for some reason,' she thought. Was it really appropriate to ask him these questions? Was she making him remember bad memories?

When Kurama was quiet all of a sudden, Botan assumed she was poking her nose around too much. "A-ah, you don't have to—"

"Your grandmother and I were pretty close; she was one of the people in your family, besides your great grandfather and your father, to have taught me kindness. And she definitely has more manners than you do, that's one thing I can say for sure. And about your looks, she is far more attractive."

A vein popped at the back of Botan's head. "What did you say?!"

Kurama laughed wholeheartedly at her reaction, amused. But his laughter was cut short when he felt a familiar presence, alarming him of impending danger. Botan's safety was a priority, so the first thing he did was to jump on the table, and grabbed on to Botan, his back facing the window as it shattered at that same moment, sending shards of the broken glass stabbing into his back. He held back a groan from the pain, before looking down at his mistress, a smile forming on his lips as he stared down at her worried face.

"K-Kurama… Oh my god, you're bleeding!"

"Ha!... I've felt worse pain, you don't have to worry. At least you're… safe…" his words trailed off as he caught an almost irresistible scent, a familiar sweet aroma… that awakened his hunger. Still, he controlled it the best he could, his eyes trailing down to see a wound at Botan's neck, her blood trickling down her pearl white skin. He cursed, wondering how the hell he missed to protect her from a single broken glass that had apparently cut her. Thankfully, nothing worse happened to her. Although he could feel his fangs sharpening in his mouth at the thought of sinking them into her throat, he turned around and narrowed his eyes at the familiar sight.

"Hiei," he said, the word leaving his mouth in a hiss. "What are you doing here?" he asked in the least welcoming way possible, emerald eyes glaring at crimson ones.

"Why, I'm here to see how you're doing of course, my dear 'friend'," Hiei spat out venomously. Looking away from the redhead, his gaze felled on the human girl Kurama was hiding behind him. That was proven unsuccessful however as Hiei sensed her. "I see that you're still working your butt off for that stupid human family," he snorted, before taking a sit on the table. This resulted to a gawking Botan. Who the hell did he think he was? Insulting her family, and then openly sitting on the table where she eats like that?

"Why you—Who are you calling stupid, you shor—"

Kurama cut Botan off before she could finish. "Shut up, idiot. This guy's way dangerous than you think he is."

"Ha!" Hiei scoffed. "You should listen to your slave, woman. If you had even dared to insult my height, I would've killed you in an instant."

"You should watch what you say, Hiei. Contrary to what you just said, I don't find myself being their slave. They treat me equally, thank you. And you… you should know not to hurt my mistress in any way. There are consequences to your actions."

"I know that already." Hiei rolled his eyes. "I was only trying to test her out, you know? She is nowhere near as alert as that fool Shinji was. She should be more careful in the future, if you weren't here and if I wasn't the one who tried to attack her, the idiot would soon find herself without a head on her shoulders."

Botan glared at him. Whoever this boy was, he seemed to know Kurama. It wasn't that hard for her to figure out he was also a vampire.

"Shinji had a gun to protect himself, during times you weren't around him. Her stupid great grandfather had his sword with him, and that idiotic woman Hitomi was feisty enough to know how to fight, albeit her martial arts skills didn't really protect her much, but it had provided her enough time until you'd arrive to rescue her. Yet this girl…" Hiei's eyes narrowed dangerously at Botan's form, to which the girl responded by narrowing hers back. "…has no ability whatsoever. I can see why you were in such a haste to find her. She's as defenseless as a dog. In fact, at least dogs have their teeth to bite their enemy, this girl have nothing."

"You sure talk too much, don't you?" was Botan's only response, despite the many names she wanted to call him going through her head. She certainly didn't want to anger him. Sure, Kurama was there to protect her if Hiei was to hurt her, but she didn't like the thought of giving him anymore trouble.

"Hn."

"… Is that it? Nothing else?"

"Hiei doesn't really talk much actually, Botan. He only does that when he has insults to throw at you," Kurama's voice spoke.

"Well, that makes him all the more unpleasant," Botan bitterly said, as she continued to stare at the short vampire still sitting on her table for a few moments, before turning to look at Kurama who had apparently thought Hiei's presence was no longer a threat and moved away from her to sit on the chair, hands removing the glassy shards dug deep into his back.

"Are you alright?" she inquired, about to walk towards him to help only to be stopped.

"Don't," Kurama sternly opposed. "I'm fine."

"No, you're not," Botan stubbornly replied back before walking over to the nearby drawers, grabbing a bowl, and a towel in the process, and opening the water pipe to fill the bowl with water. She sauntered right back at Kurama as soon as she was finished, and the redhead was sporting a curious expression on his face, as if asking her what she was doing. "If you're here to protect me, I'm not just gonna sit around and do nothing. At least let me wash your wounds everytime you get hurt."

True to her words, Botan pulled up the shirt he was wearing to reveal the bloody wounds on his back. Her face softened; she couldn't believe he would endure this just for her safety. Was the contract really that important that he was willing to risk his own safety in return for hers? She sighed, and dipped the towel into the bowl.

Kurama, on the other hand though, thought the wounds were nothing serious. "They will heal soon. Not instantly, but our bodies are far stronger than humans, so you don't have to worry."

The girl had apparently ignored him, as he felt a cold substance at his back. He heaved a sigh, before shaking his head. "Seriously, you humans never listen to me…"

His attention was diverted to Hiei, when the other vampire suddenly stood up. "Going already?"

"I have no attention in staying too long," was his friend's only response before he disappeared in a blur, leaving Kurama with his mistress.

"Who is he?" Botan's voice reached his ears, and he hummed in response,

"A friend of mine. Shinji once 'saved' him."

"Saved?" The girl echoed, and was about to ask him what he meant, when he suddenly grabbed her wrist and stood up from the chair. She gave him a questioning look.

"You… stop, I'm all fine now."

"Huh?"

Kurama cleared his throat before speaking, "More importantly, you should wrap that up," and pointed at her still bleeding neck.

It took her a moment to realize that she herself was wounded, oblivious to the hungry stare Kurama was sending her. "Ah, I… for…" her voice trailed off, as Kurama grabbed her by the shoulders almost harshly, and pushed her back to the chair. "H-huh? K-Kurama…? What's wrong?" she asked as soon as she saw that he was breathing heavily, though she was still shocked and slightly afraid of what he might do to her.

Kurama didn't reply, and upon closer look, Botan noticed the sharp fangs poking out of his mouth. Sharp and dangerous, almost as if he was about to… bite her… Her eyes widened in fear at the thought and she struggled to release herself from his hold, but it was proven difficult, as he held her firmly to the chair.

His face lowered and… she screamed. "No! Don't!"

And as if he had just woken up from a spell, Kurama pulled away almost as immediately as he heard her yell. Surprised, was all he could say about how he felt. His eyes softened a bit as he caught sight of her quivering figure, as if she was in the presence of an enemy that would hurt her and kill her. He let go of her, but as he did so, his hands curled into fists, as his concern was replaced with anger. Anger at himself, or was it at her for lacking the understanding that she would have to give him her blood? It was part of the contract, for god's sake! But… he realized that wasn't the case as he continued to stare at her. Her great grandfather, Hitomi, Shinji… and even this girl. They all got to him, and with each encounter, he found himself growing softer and softer by the minute.

What was he doing acting like a human when he was actually a vampire? As if to remind himself of his cruel nature, and where he originally belonged, he growled, dark, low and dangerous, trying to ignore the way the girl flinched at the sound. "You know already that you have to let me suck your blood. That's a part of the contract, it's your part of the bargain. If you can't give me a drop, then you can go ahead and protect yourself. You obviously don't need my help."

Botan was shocked by his words, what was this? Just now, he was acting so friendly with her? Telling her all sorts of things about her family… why was he saying all these things to her? She snapped out of her thoughts when she saw that Kurama was walking away.

"W-wait—"

"Until you can learn to accept the fact that you have to give me your blood, don't talk to me," was all he said before he was out of the kitchen, leaving a confused Botan to clean all the mess Hiei made.

Botan stared at the spot he once stood for what seemed like an eternity, before curling her hands into small fists. What? All this because she wasn't ready to let him sink his fangs into her yet? A hand moved up to cup her wound, as she put little to no care at all to how disgusting it felt as the blood trickled down her skin. All this things happening to her… and all for her blood…

"You vampires are all the same…"


	3. Chapter 3

**Bitten and Smitten**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho.**

 **Chapter 3**

He was hearing voices in his head… familiar… voices… One of them he recognized as his own, and the other one…

 _"Huh? You want to sign a contract with me for… protection?"_

 _"Yes, that's right."_

'Huh… I think I can remember this happening. Memories of my past… are coming back to me…' Kurama closed his eyes, albeit nothing came in his mind, but he still heard the voices and remained still on the bed as if he was trying to listen more.

 _"Ha-ha! I think you still don't understand what's going on here. Why the hell are you asking me to protect you? I'm a vampire!"_

 _"That's exactly why I'm asking you to do it. Protect me, and my family blood is all yours."_

 _"… You… how do you know I won't use it for evil?"_

 _"A gut feeling."_

 _"Huh?"_

 _"Well? Do you agree?"_

 _"… I don't know what you're up to. But if I can have all that power to myself, then I'll happily oblige."_

'Ah, that's right… That time, I didn't think of anything but the thought of having his blood all to myself. I… didn't know how important he and his family would mean to me,' he thought for a moment, and almost as instantly, an image of Botan sporting a bright jovial smile appeared in his mind.

Opening his emerald eyes, he got up from the bed, placing his hands on each side of his hips. His orbs trailed to a picture of a baby Botan held gently by her mother with her father, Shinji, standing right beside them, sitting neatly on the table across the bed. All three of them were smiling, but his gaze focused on the tiny infant in the woman's arms. Memories of the first time he ever saw her came flooding back into his head.

 _"Kurama," Shinji called, and the addressed vampire looked at him._

 _"Huh? What is it?" he replied back not so politely, irritated that once again his peaceful sleep was disturbed by his master._

 _"Can you come here?"_

 _Kurama sighed heavily, it wasn't a request, but an order. He knew that already and immediately got up and walked straight towards the happy couple sitting at the dining table, all the while ignoring the way Shinji's wife, Yuri, was sticking her tongue out at him._

 _"What do you want from me?" he asked, his eyes holding no interest in them at all._

 _"I want you to look at her, my first child."_

 _"Ah, so what of her? I don't really care. I mean, your family is pretty much doomed with one child in each of its generation, so I get why you're excited about your baby. It's not like you're having another baby anyway," Kurama retorted, scratching the back of his head and was about to walk away, ignoring Yuri who was reprimanding him for being rude. Really, was that all?_

 _He was stopped by a tug at his collar, causing him to let out an exasperated sigh. Turning his head around to look at Shinji, he inquired, "What?"_

 _Shinji smiled, apparently not bothered at all by the vampire's attitude. He lived with the redhead vampire long enough to get used to this sort of thing. "It's nothing at all like you said, Kurama. I want you to see her… because in seventeen years from now, you would be serving her instead of me."_

 _The redheaded vampire blinked at the man for a few times before walking back to see the infant, Yuri pulling away the towel that was covering some of the baby's face. With a cute, open mouthed smile, the baby reached a hand at his direction as if beckoning him to come closer. He did, and upon closer look at those pink and soft chubby cheeks, that non toothy smile she had on her face, he couldn't help but think how cute Shinji's child was._

 _Wanting to test how soft the baby's skin was, Kurama's hand reached out to touch her… but was immediately stopped in its movements, as the child grabbed onto his index finger as soon as he was close enough. The vampire was almost frantic, surprised by the child's actions. The small infant happily made a baby sound, as if she liked holding on to him like that._

 _"Beautiful, isn't she?"_

 _A smile formed at the corners of his mouth as the little girl started playing with his other fingers._

 _"Meet your soon to be mistress, Botan."_

 _It was a wonderful name._

 _For such a pretty girl like herself._

'That time… She probably doesn't remember. After all, she was still a baby…' He remembered distantly how the couple had divorced in a week soon after. He didn't think they would get separated, but when they did, he had desperately wanted to reunite with that little girl. That small infant that held so much innocence in his eyes.

" _Until you can learn to accept the fact that you have to give me your blood, don't talk to me,"_ his last words to her came in mind. A heavy sigh escaped his lips, frustrated at his own behavior. 'How long has it been since I've stopped talking to her? A day or two… What should I do? Ah! I should just apologize to her. Maybe I should make her something when she comes home to atone for my mistakes. How would she take it, I wonder? Is she mad…' his thoughts came into a halt as he suddenly felt a spasm of pain his head, causing him to flinch and hold a hand to his forehead.

'Ow… I've been feeling terrible these couple of days. I wonder why? Is it because I haven't been drinking blood…?' he wondered to himself, before flopping back on the bed. 'That idiot… when is she gonna give me her blood?'

He closed his eyes once again, feeling the pain disappearing in just a few seconds as he did so. 'Well, it's not like I can force her…'

* * *

"Hey, Botan."

The girl snapped out of her thoughts, turning to look at Keiko and Yukina who were both sporting concerned expressions on their faces.

"Are you okay? You seem kinda out of it today," Keiko asked worriedly, noticing her friend was spacing out more often than she usually would.

Botan gave her a small, sheepish laugh as she scratched the back of her head. "H-huh? Really? Ha-ha. Sorry, it's nothing serious," she lied. In all true honesty, she had been thinking about a certain red haired vampire the entire day. It had been two days since they last spoke to each other, each effort she tried to communicate with him had rewarded her with nothing but a small nod or a hum in response. He didn't even pester her in the mornings about coming to school with her. Was he that mad at her for not giving him her blood? 'Well, not like I can blame him either… I mean, he is a vampire after all…' she sighed mentally.

Botan's hand reached up to cup her wound. It had been exactly two days since then, and she still had a bandage wrapped around her neck. When Keiko and Yukina had asked her what happened, she told them nothing but she felled. Typical excuse, but she didn't know what else to say.

She felt bad for deceiving her friends like this, but it wasn't like she could tell them anything either. Would they believe her if she told she had a vampire living with her at her apartment?... She didn't think so.

"Hmm, well, if it's nothing serious then I guess Keiko and I don't have to worry… right?" Yukina agreed after a while. She sent Keiko a look that maybe they should leave their friend alone for now, to which the brunette agreed, although she was slightly reluctant.

"But, it sure is getting kinda late, isn't it?" Botan said, looking around cautiously. It was getting dark, and Botan was certain that some of _them_ were hanging around somewhere near. If not, then she was glad, but it wouldn't hurt to be wary a little.

"Ah, you're right. I'm sorry for this, guys. I mean, you guys helped with my homework…" Yukina said, looking down at the ground all of a sudden. She was feeling quite guilty for troubling her friends.

"No, no. It's no trouble at all, Yukina. I'm kinda used to walking home late, after all," Keiko dismissed her with a wave.

"Keiko's right, Yukina! We're friends, so naturally we have to help one another," Botan added and Keiko gave frequent nods in agreement.

"Ah, yes. I suppose you're correct," Yukina beamed, head moving up as her cheerful mood returned. She looked straight, and let out an 'Oh!' when she realized they were at a familiar place.

"What's wrong, Yukina?" Keiko inquired with a tilt of her head.

"This park… I promised my brother I'd wait for him to pick me up here. To be honest, I considered walking home myself… but he told me it wasn't safe at this hour…" Yukina trailed off, as she gazed around for any signs of her brother.

"Oh yeah, you have a brother, don't you? I remember you told us once before, but I've never seen this guy's face," Botan said, looking around as well.

"Yeah, twin brother, right?" Keiko chimed in.

Yukina nodded her head. "I'm sure he's around here somewhere… Ah! Big brother!" The short girl's face brightened, as she waved at a certain direction.

The other girls' attentions perked up as they looked at the same direction. Upon catching sight on Yukina's 'brother', Keiko blinked, "Oh wow, he has really strange hair…"

Botan, on the other hand, couldn't help but gawk. 'H-Hiei?!' her mind screamed, and she stared with jaws opened as Hiei walked over to Yukina, not forgetting to send her a glare as if saying he'd kill her if she were to say anything.

Upon closer look, Botan realized the two bear some similarities in their appearances, including their height and their eyes. Why didn't she notice it before? What was this? Why was Hiei Yukina's brother? He's a vampire! And… and Yukina's a human, right? Botan was starting to get confused.

"Well, I'll see you at school tomorrow," Yukina bid them farewell as she started to walk away, along with Hiei, who stopped giving Botan weird looks after his sister started pulling him away.

"Yeah! See ya," Keiko bid back.

"Y-yeah, see ya…" A weak wave was Botan's only response.

"Hey, what's up with you?" the brunette asked after the siblings figures disappeared from this sight.

"H-huh? Nothing. Ha-ha…" Botan laughed awkwardly, waving her arms in the hand frantically.

"You're acting really weird, Botan…"

"He-he, is that so…?"

Keiko shook her head in response, letting out a mental sigh in her head. It was obvious Botan wasn't going to tell her what was bothering her anyway so… "I gotta go. My house is this way," she said, pointing at the right.

"Ah, right. I'm gonna go this way," Botan pointed at the other direction. Holding up her hand, she waved at her friend. "See ya tomorrow, Keiko."

"Yeah, you too," Keiko said back, before turning around and walking away.

Botan stared at her friend's retreating back for what seemed like the longest time, before heaving out a sigh. "And I'm now alone… why did my house have to be this way?" she complained, walking the other way,

oblivious to the dark figure following her.

* * *

Kurama's eyes shot open in alarm and his body bolted upright from the bed, sensing bloodlust somewhere near the apartment. His instincts told him that Botan had something to do with it and he didn't second guess them.

"Shit!" he cursed, and in one swift movement, he got up from the bed, opening the window of Botan's bedroom, and jumping outside.

"Botan…"

* * *

Botan continued to ponder how Hiei could be Yukina's brother as she walked. "Is it possible that Yukina knows about vampires and stuff? Or is she a vampire herself? If so, was she pretending to be a human all this time?... No no, I don't think sweet Yukina would do that. Maybe Hiei used to be a human. I mean, humans can turn into vampires, right? Uwahh, this is so confusing, but I so wanna know what's going on. Maybe I should ask Kurama… but would he talk to me? Hmm… maybe I should just listen to what Hiei have to say about this. I'm sure he has an explanation or some… thing…"

Her voice trailed off, as she saw another shadow reflected by the moonlight striding behind her. Was someone there besides her? Why didn't she notice the shadow earlier… A thought crossed her mind and she turned around as fast as she could to see who it was.

But all she caught sight of was a blurry shadow, as if whoever – or whatever – that had been there had gone somewhere else. Fear overcame her, and she whipped around to run… only to come face to face with a monstrosity.

"Kikiki… Don't you think it's weird to talk to yourself, little girl?" the vampire taunted, his fangs sharpening and glistening under the moonlight as he walked over towards her, resulting Botan to take a few steps back to distance herself from him.

She only took about five steps back, before turning around the other way, and started running. Where was she going to go now? She was going the wrong direction! But she didn't want to pass by that dangerous thing… Where was she going to run to now? An idea occurred in her head, 'I—I'll run until I find a public place where there're a lot of people at. Surely, he doesn't have the nerve to—' Her mind was cut short when she tripped on a rock and fell on the ground.

"O-ow… W-why…?" she weakly mumbled to herself. Trying to stand up, Botan winced as she felt a spasm of pain at her right knee and she looked down to see why – blood was trickling down her leg. Apparently the fall was hard enough that it broke through her skin. Her eyes widened in alarm at this. "N-no…"

She heard something landed in front of her, followed by the sound of a thud and a cackle. Tears started to form at the back of her eyes, as she dreadfully looked up to see the vampire sporting a sick smile on his face. Even if she was to run now, she wouldn't be able to run fast considering her knee was injured, and that would mean her efforts would be futile because he would catch up to her in no time. There really was no way for her to escape, but she didn't want to die here either.

Closing her eyes as the vampire closed in on her, Botan's mind uttered the one would it could… 'K-Kurama…'

… And almost all too suddenly and coincidentally, Botan felt something wrapped around her waist, engulfing her in a familiar warmth. Her head tilted up to fall on the face of her rescuer; and that was none other than Kurama herself.

"You disgraceful thing… how dare you land a hand on my mistress?!" Kurama spat out venomously, his already sharpened claws dripped with the blood of another. Slowly looking down at the girl in his arms, a gentle and heartwarming smile found its way to his face, "Are you okay?"

"Y-yeah…" she nodded her head as she said this.

Kurama's smile considerably widened, before he turned to look the other way, the warmth in his emerald eyes earlier now replaced with menace, anger and coldness as he glared at the being who dared to try to hurt his beloved mistress.

Kurama's arms loosened their hold on Botan's waist, and he cracked his knuckles, without taking his eyes off of his prey, who was pressing a hand against his now injured and bleeding shoulder. "Now then, are you prepared—" He felt a pain in his head yet again, but this time it was more painful, like something stabbing him inside his head.

"N-not again…" he muttered grudgingly under his breath, as his hand wrapped around his head, cursing as the pain only worsened.

"K-Kurama?! What's wrong?" He distantly caught the sound of Botan's voice. With one hand removed from his head, he used it to press against the wall for support, afraid he might fall if he didn't. He was beginning to feel dizzy…

"K-Kurama?" There, he heard it again… His eyes were starting to get drowsy as he tried to look at her. His vision was blurry, but he recognized her blue hair anyway. In his blurry sight, he saw her walked towards him all the while screaming his name.

"Kah-kah… Not so tough now, are ya?" he heard another voice said, someone he could easily recognized as the wretched one who tried to kill Botan, alarming him even in his worsening condition.

'As I thought, it really is because I haven't 'eaten'…' he thought, as this time, he pressed his back against the wall, eyes downward and eyeing the floor. The pain inside his head was nearly unbearable, causing his legs to quiver. 'B-but… I gotta protect Botan… Damn it…'

He felt a warm hand tugged at his shoulder, and he looked up to see Botan's face. One moment, it was clear as daylight, and the next everything was blurry… "R-run…" he managed to say.

Botan shook her head in disobedience. "No! I'm not gonna leave you!" she stubbornly decided.

"Really, you never listen to me…"

"Why don't you give up already, girly? Your knight in shining armor is unable to fight, and you're completely defenseless… don't cha think this is a good time to let me have a drop of that delicious blood of yours?"

"No! I'm not gonna let you lay one finger on me or Kurama!" Botan wrapped her arms around the red haired vampire as she said this in defiance.

"I-Idiot… He's not after me… you should run…" Kurama drowsily told her, a clawed hand reaching up to try to push the girl away. He was unsuccessful however, proving that his strength was disappearing by the minute. 'Dammit… I should've easily pushed her off…'

"I don't care… You promised me you'd be here for me whenever I need you. I'm gonna be there for you as well. Just because you signed a contract to protect me, that doesn't mean I can't protect you… We're friends, after all… and friends count on each other!"

'Friends?' Kurama thought in his mind. He formed a small smile. 'You and your family… Honestly, you idiots are too kind for your own good…' His smile soon felled at the thought that he was now weak, and unable to protect Botan.

"I'm sorry…" were the last words he uttered before he was slowly losing his consciousness. An image of the baby Botan conjured itself in his mind, acting as the last thing he sees, before his eyes slowly closed.

"K-Kurama…?"

"Say your prayers, girl," the vampire sinisterly said, alarming Botan of his presence. She looked at him and saw his claws sharpening, uncaring of the touching scene in front of him.

Botan closed her eyes, and hugged Kurama tight and close against her own body, preparing herself for the attack. Well, at least, she had Kurama by her side…

But then, she heard a scream that sounded like it belonged to the enemy, causing her body to jump in surprise. She opened her eyes slowly, and saw Hiei pulling his hand out of the vampire's chest. She eyed him as he licked the blood off his fingers, but despite that, she wasn't repulsed at all by the sight, and smiled in gratitude. "Hiei…! T-thank you!"

"Hn," Hiei snorted, before sliding his hands into his pockets, "Don't get me wrong, woman. I was just passing by when I caught the scent of your blood and thought of watching what was going on, but then I saw you fools were in trouble and figured I should help you." His eyes felled on Kurama's figure, resting in Botan's arms. "I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw Kurama fainted, but I guess that was to be expected. He hasn't drink anything for these couple of days and that was taking its toll on him. His health was declining, and his strength was rapidly decreasing. I'm just surprised he hadn't fainted sooner."

"Hasn't drink anything…? So this is my fault then? This happens to vampires because they don't get to suck blood, right? But why didn't he just go to find blood then? I mean, he could kill a cow or something or suck any other human's blood if he had to… To be honest, I don't like the thought of him sinking his fangs into the throat of an innocent person… but if this was going to happen to him, he should've done so. O-or, he could've just asked me… I would've done anything for him if I've known he wouldn't get hurt..."

Hiei was unresponsive for a moment, before a loud, exasperated sigh escaped him. This caught Botan's attention, and she was about to ask him what was wrong, when he suddenly grabbed a hold on Kurama. She watched as he wrapped his friend's arm around his shoulders. "You really don't understand, do you? Hasn't Kurama told you anything yet about the contract?" he asked.

"What? Of course I know about the contract. He's supposed to protect me and I have to—"

"That's not what I meant, you stupid fool!"

"…Then what are you talking about?"

The short vampire stared at her for a few long moments, before facing the direction to her apartment, and started to walk along the road, with Botan following closely behind him. "Kurama can't drink another person's blood, aside the ones who carry your family's blood," he finally spoke.

Botan's brows furrowed. "Huh? Why?"

"I don't know why, but once, he tried to suck your mother's blood when he couldn't control his hunger because your father was gone. When he did, he eventually fell sick. It took me and Shinji weeks to find an antidote for him. He got better, but we all agreed not to let him drink anything else."

"E-eh? T-that can be…"

"For other vampires, we have other sources of food. There are a lot of humans in this world, after all. But vampires like Kurama, who form forbidden contracts with humans… they're doomed with one food source until they die. That's why when you didn't let him suck your blood, he became like this. Blood is the only thing that gives us strength for us vampires. And since you're the only thing he can receive food from, it was only a matter of time for his condition to worsen."

"As I thought, this is my fault…"

"Ha!" Hiei scoffed. "Good that you know that, human. If it weren't for you, we wouldn't be in this… predica…ment…" his voice trailed off as Botan suddenly started to sob.

"H-hey! Why the hell are you weeping for?" Hiei almost panicked. Never once in his life, he saw a woman cry.

"B-because… because of me, Kurama's…" Botan continued to sob uncontrollably. In fact, she started to cry louder.

"T-that's enough!"

But Botan still didn't stop crying even as he ordered her to. There was a moment of silence, before he finally looked away, a slight pink color tinting his cheeks. He cleared his throat, "A-anyway… Kurama wouldn't want to see you cry, so I demand you stop. Now."

Thankfully, Botan did stop after listening to his words.

He mentally sighed in relief at this, and upon realizing they arrived at the door of Botan's apartment and waiting for the girl to unlock the door, he pushed Kurama towards her as soon as she opened it.

Botan was surprised at this, but managed to catch him anyway. "H-Hiei…"

"Hn," was all Hiei said, before sliding his hands into his pockets, and started to walk away.

The girl watched as Hiei's figure suddenly disappeared in a blur. She had actually wanted to ask him about Yukina, but figured she'd save that for another time.

Sighing, Botan entered the safe confines of her apartment, and with much effort, she tried to close the door. It was proven difficult as she had to support Kurama's weight, but she succeeded, turning the key and hearing the locking sound.

She took off her shoes, letting them lie untidily on the floor, before walking towards her room, but her steps moved from right to left as Kurama was heavy. 'He needs to lose some weight…' she mused to herself, before opening the room, and took cautious steps to the bed. When she reached the edge of her bed, she flopped Kurama down on it.

Botan stared at him for a moment, and shook her head, taking her eyes off of his form. She walked out of the room after deciding to get a glass of water. 'I'm thirsty…' she rubbed her throat, and reached for the cabinet as soon as she entered the kitchen.

Just when her hand was about to touch the surface of her glass, a mouse scurried its way out of a drawers, and ran all the way to another one, but it touched Botan's leg in the process, surprising her in return. She let out a surprised gasp, and felled to her feet, the glass she had nearly grabbed falling from the cabinet and breaking into pieces on the ground.

"Oh, great…" she mumbled grudgingly to herself. Reaching up to pick up the sharp shards, she had accidentally cut her finger as she did so. "Ow!" Botan winced, licking the small drop of blood that came out of her wound.

* * *

A sweet aroma filled Kurama's senses, causing his eyes to shot open, and he sat up from the bed, eyes wide. His fangs sharpened as his hunger took control, his claws gripped onto the bed sheets, making shreds on them, but he didn't care. He breathed heavily, as one name passed his line of thoughts… 'Botan…'

Almost as if she knew he was calling her, the door opened, and in came Botan with a finger in her mouth. Her finger came out with a pop as she beamed, happy that Kurama was awake. "Kurama, you—"

She cut herself short when she noticed how heavy Kurama's breathing was. Worried that something was happening to him again, she walked over to him with a concerned look on her face, "Are you alright, Kurama? Are you hurt anywhere?" she inquired in a soft voice.

Her hand extended to touch him, but as soon as she was close enough, she felt him grab her wrist in a vice like grip. Botan's eyes widened, as in one swift movement, he pulled her and flipped them around until he was on top of her.

"K-Kurama?!"

"Botan…"

She almost panicked when he suddenly took off her jacket, throwing it away at his shoulder. "I don't know how much longer I can hold back…" he whispered desperately, as his hands unbuttoned the few buttons of her shirt. After that, Kurama reached inside the piece of clothing, ignoring the way Botan jumped at the feeling of his skin against hers.

He was so warm… Botan couldn't help but think, even as Kurama slipped her shirt from her shoulders. Admittedly, she was quite embarrassed. She knew what Kurama meant; that he wanted drink her blood and not do anything other than that but it was still embarrassing to be so exposed to him like this. The air felt cold, but his touch was radiating so much warmth on her skin…

"Is it okay if I…"

"It's okay," Botan stopped him, wrapping her arms around his neck, and pulling him down to her neck. "F-from now on, all you have to do is ask, and I'll let you… suck me…"

At first, she felt nothing, and for a moment, she wondered if Kurama had fallen asleep again, but then she felt him lick her collarbone, earning a gasp from her in return. Then, she heard him let out a growl, and in a matter of seconds, she felt the pain of two sharp fangs plunged into her skin. She gasped again, this time a little louder. She felt him started to suck her, sucking sounds beginning to fill the room. It hurt a little, but she was willing to endure it. It hurt even more when she tried to move, so she stayed still.

He removed his fangs from their position, and descended lower, his lips brushing softly against her skin before… he opened his mouth, and plunged his teeth deep into the soft pearl white skin right beneath her collarbone, feeling slightly excited by the way she panted as he sucked more and more of her blood. This… felt strange… It felt different than the times he used to suck Shinji's or Hitomi's blood. More power than usual was flowing into his body and it felt so… good…

He couldn't help himself, he couldn't control himself. He removed his fangs yet again, only to move somewhere upper, his fangs digging deep into her shoulders and he ignored the way Botan had gasped out his name.

Botan, on the other hand, couldn't help but think this was getting too out of hand… Wasn't he sucking too much of her blood? She was feeling faint… Her vision started to turn blurry, and she grabbed onto Kurama's broad shoulders, unsure if she should tell him to stop or let him keep going.

Ah, wait…

She was losing consciousness…


	4. Chapter 4

**Bitten and Smitten**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho.**

 **Chapter 4**

Botan woke up feeling better than she expected. Her shoulders and a few areas on her upper body were a bit sore, but other than that she felt just fine. She thought when she'd wake up, she'd see blood all over the sheets, but… they were clean, as if Kurama had just washed them. Speaking of him anyway…

She looked around, realizing the vampire wasn't in her room. Unsure how to react of last night's incident's, she got up from the bed and walked over to the mirror. With her right hand, she slipped her shirt off her body, not fully but enough to see the bite marks on her skin. On her collarbone, her shoulder, her arms, her neck (did he take off the bandage?) and other places… She wasn't sure how long Kurama had been sucking her blood last night, she passed out somewhere in between…

Botan heaved a sigh, before starting to take off her clothes. She didn't bathe since she got home from school the day before, she really needed one now.

At least, she was glad she didn't have school today.

* * *

"Oh, how do you feel?"

was the question that Kurama had asked as soon as she sat at the dining table. She noticed he was cooking something. "Shockingly, I don't feel too bad. What are you making?" she asked, eyes on him as he turned off the stove.

"Eggs and bacon," he replied all too cheerfully, turning around with a plate of eggs and bacon in his hands, before putting it down in front of her.

"Thank you."

"You're welcome," he said again with the same tone.

Botan paused for a moment, eyeing him suspiciously, all the while taking a bite of the delicious breakfast her bodyguard made her. "Someone… seems to be kinda in a good mood. Why is that?" she spoke after a while of staring.

"Huh? Who, me?"

"Who else would I mean?!"

He laughed, before leaning against the kitchen counter, eyes focused on her. "I'm just really satisfied, that's all. I haven't had food for a while now… Since Shinji died and you refused to let me have a sip, I didn't eat… until last night. I'm really happy you gave me your permission."

"Oh, right…"

"Anyway, since we're on the subject… I'm sorry for what happened yesterday. I just couldn't stop. I didn't realize you fainted," he suddenly said, giving her an apologetic smile.

Botan smiled back. "Oh, that. It's fine, I don't really mind… but next time, stop before I pass out okay? You really gonna kill me if you keep that up…" she mumbled into her food.

Kurama let out an amused chuckle by his mistress' words. "Yeah yeah, I'll try."

She sent a shocked expression his way. "Try?!"

His lips tugged into a smile once again, but it was too sadistic for Botan's own taste. Walking over to the girl, he bent down until he was only mere inches from her face, emerald eyes darkening slightly in what she thought was lust… for her blood, probably?

"Kurama?!" his name came out as a surprise yelp, as he suddenly grabbed her chin, tilting her head up to expose her neck.

He stared at the pearl white skin, the blood pumping inside beckoning him closer, but he resisted the urge to bite her as he didn't want to ruin her breakfast… not just yet. That didn't stop him from saying more though, "Your blood… it's so delicious, I find myself addicted and aching for more. The power inside… is much, much stronger than what I've received before. And your face… contorted in pain, but your eyes desperately want to give in. Was it to make it easier for you to let me suck your blood? I don't know but… oh my, I love it when you make that face. That face you make as my fangs enter you… I wanna see it again. Just the thought of sinking my fangs into you and seeing that face again arouses me so much more…"

Blood rushed to Botan's cheeks at his words. For a moment, she was too surprise to even move but her shock died down soon after and she pushed him away. This didn't seem to affect him however, as he smirked.

"D-don't put it in the lewd way!" she yelled, before looking away. "I-I only did what was necessary… You were dying and you are my friend… At least, I consider you as a friend anyway. Besides, it is the part of the contract and I have to abide since I don't really have a choice in the matter. If these were normal circumstances, I wouldn't have given you a drop."

Kurama blinked, he didn't expect her to respond in such a way, of all things. For some odd reason, it amused him, and he laughed, mirth dancing in his eyes. "Is that so? I see?"

Botan stared at the vampire, eyes eyeing him, wondering what was going through in his head. She was confused when he laughed so suddenly… was what she said really that funny? Another thought occurred in her head and she averted her eyes on her now empty plate. 'Kurama's really nice, he's protected me all this time… and he even cooked me this nice breakfast,' Remembering the sadistic look on his face earlier, she couldn't help the shiver that ran up her spine and the feeling of trepidation in her heart, '… but he still is a vampire… and he drinks blood… my blood…"

In spite the fact she agreed to let him drink from her anytime he wanted, she couldn't help but feel slightly afraid… unsure how deep the vampire's love for her blood was. He couldn't hold back the night before… it was obvious he had no control whatsoever as soon as his fangs were dug deep into her skin… could he really hold back the next time? She wasn't sure if she was willing to faint everytime he'd suck her blood.

"Anyway," his voice reached her ears, snapping her out of her thoughts, "did Hiei tell you about how I can't suck someone else's blood but yours?"

Botan was slightly caught off guard. "Y-yeah…" she replied back weakly, placing a hand on her chest to calm down the loud thumping of her heart. What was she so afraid of? The minute she heard his voice, it was as if her heart would escape out of her chest. As expected, a human really do fear vampires… no matter who they are… but… 'Kurama has done a lot of things for my family… if it weren't for him I wouldn't be alive… or dad, grandmother and my great grandfather, for that matter…'

"Are you okay?" Kurama inquired worriedly, noticing her behavior had changed all of a sudden. Did he scare her too much? Suddenly, he felt guilty… It was true that he couldn't control his thirst as soon as he had a taste of her blood; he was still a vampire, after all, it was almost natural for him. But, maybe what he said was a bit too much…

He went up to apologize, but Botan stopped him before he could. "I'm alright," she reassured him with a smile. "Anyway, I wonder why you can't receive blood that doesn't come from my family?" she curiously asked. Well, she had been wondering for a while now…

He shrugged his shoulders, his initial concern over her died down as she turned out to be fine. "I don't really know myself, but my guess is that is just a side effect or something… Like a curse, because I made a contract with your family."

"A curse?"

"Yeah. After all, a contract between humans and vampires is basically taboo. It usually comes with 'side effects' that effect both parties, the human and the vampire."

Botan brought a finger to her chin, letting the information sink in. "Hmm, I think I get it…" A thought crossed her mind, and she pointed a finger at herself. "By the way, what about me? What effect happens to me?" Curious girl, that she was.

For a moment, Kurama was quiet. He didn't say anything and just stared at her. She tilted her head in confusion, wondering why the vampire was suddenly being silent.

Kurama, on the other hand, pondered whether he should tell her. He could still remember what Shinji told him…

" _Before I die, I want you to do something for me… Don't ever tell Botan about_ _ **it**_ _ever, get it?"_

He didn't understand why he shouldn't; was it really a good idea to hide it from her? One day, she was going to know anyway… Unsure how to answer the question, Kurama picked up the plate on her table, turning to the kitchen sink to wash it. "Well… let's talk about that for another time," he muttered under his breath, his voice low but it was loud enough for Botan to hear.

She furrowed her brows, bewildered by his response. What did that mean? Why couldn't he tell her now? She has the right to know, doesn't she? She opened her mouth to command him to tell her anyway… but no word managed to come out of her when the doorbell suddenly sounded. Torn apart between forcing Kurama to talk, and opening the door, she looked between the wooden material and the vampire back and forth. She really wanted to know now, but… she didn't want to be rude to whoever was at the door, either. Sighing when the person kept ringing the doorbell, Botan chose to leave Kurama alone for now and sauntered to the door.

She opened it, and was greeted by the sight of her two best friends. "Keiko? Yukina? What are you doing here?"

"What else? To hangout, of course!" Keiko replied, as if it was the most obvious fact in the whole world.

"Huh?" Botan blinked, and for a moment, she racked her brain to recall a time when she invited her friends over. When nothing came, she asked again, "Really, what are you doing here? I don't remember inviting you guys over…"

"Oh, don't be such a killjoy, Botan. We're best friends, do we really need invitations?" Keiko responded, and before the owner of the house could protest, the brunette pushed her aside and walked inside.

Suddenly remembering that Kurama was there, Botan reached out to grab Keiko's shoulder to stop her from moving any further… She didn't want her friend to see him, considering she would surely start to ask questions, but she was too late as Keiko saw him before she could stop her.

"Huh?" Brown eyes met emerald eyes, and both orbs blinked.

Kurama paused for a moment… before tilting his head to the side and asking, "Pardon me, but who are you?"

"More like, who are _you_?" she shot back. The brunette wondered who the hell he was… and why was he washing the dishes at Botan's house, for god's sake?!

"Oh? I didn't know you have company, Botan," Yukina who suddenly popped out behind Keiko and Botan spoke up. Being the polite girl she was, she bowed down in respect. "My name is Yukina, it's nice to meet you, um…"

"Kurama," the redhead answered, washing his wet hands with a towel. "So… who are you anyway?" he asked once again.

"We're Botan's friends!" Keiko retorted, pointing a finger at Botan in attempt to emphasize her point.

"Oh… Well, it's nice to meet you girls as well. I'm… Botan's bodyguard," he replied in the most unexpected way, causing Botan to gawk at his response.

'You idiot!' her mind screamed.

"Anyway, I didn't quite catch your name… What is it?" he questioned the brunette.

Keiko crossed her arms. "Me? I'm Keiko, one of Botan's best friends, aside from Yukina. Putting that aside though, what do you mean bodyguard?"

'WARGHHHH!' The other three in the apartment didn't seem to notice Botan pulling her hair, or maybe they just chose not to acknowledge it.

"Hmm, how do I say this?" Kurama put a finger under his chin, thinking of a way to explain the current condition without letting the human girls – aside from Botan, of course – know he was a vampire. An idea popped in his head, and the finger at his chin moved to point at himself. "I was sent here by Shinji to live with Botan and take care of her," he answered, oblivious to the fact that his response had once again caused his mistress' mind to scream in frustration,

'WAAA, you idiot! You're making it sound like you're my…'

Keiko's voice seemed to voice out her thoughts, "Ah, so you mean a babysitter."

"Babysitter?"

"Yeah, I mean you take care of Botan, right? So that makes you a babysitter."

"Ah, I see. I get your point. If that's what I sound like, then I guess you can consider me as her babysitter."

"Wow! Your father really was considerate. Hiring a babysitter for you just in case he passed away… he's a really great father!" Yukina voiced out in amazement, joining in Keiko's and Kurama's conversation.

Meanwhile, Botan mentally sighed. 'I'm screwed… They're going to find out he's a vampire…' Her shoulders dropped at the thought.

* * *

They were sitting at the dining table, and Botan stared long and hard as her friends continued to converse with Kurama.

Apparently she was wrong… because Keiko and Yukina seemed to really like Kurama… They've been talking for hours with him, and still, they haven't figure out what he is… Relief overcame her at the thought.

Still…

"Anyway, how does it feel like to live with Botan?" Keiko suddenly popped out the most unexpected question.

Botan grew irritated. "Why are you asking that?!" She couldn't believe the brunette would even dare – then again, Botan sort of predicted this coming anyway, and just sighed, when Kurama continued to acknowledge her friend's ludicrous question,

"Well, I think I enjoy serving her. I mean, she's really cute, and I get something I love in return," the redhead replied almost too cheerfully for Botan's taste, unaware that his mistress' jaws dropped at his response for the umpteenth time.

"Huh? Get something you love in return…?" Keiko seemed to twist it in another way, a blush appearing on her face at the thought she managed to conjure up in her head. "R-really?" she asked, a hand on her mouth, her voice shy all of a sudden.

Botan noticed, and quickly caught on what she was thinking. "It's not what you think, Keiko!" she panicked.

The brunette didn't acknowledge her, assuming it was just Botan being in denial again. "A-anyway, how far are you guys?"

"How far…?" Kurama couldn't put his finger on what she meant.

"Y-yeah! Like… h-have you slept with each other?!" Keiko blurted out in embarrassment, all the while trying to stop Botan who was trying to cover her mouth.

"Oh," the vampire still didn't quite understand what the brunette was talking about… and he twisted the 'sleep together' thing she said, as in sleeping together, as in sleeping in the same room… and not even coming close to what she really meant. "Well, when I first met her, I asked her to let me sleep with her, but she didn't let me. She's a really difficult girl to deal with…" he let out a sigh as he said this, recalling how his mistress had kicked him out of her room.

Keiko gawked at him. "What?! Of course she rejected you! Y-you just met…!"

"Does one need to know another before they sleep with each other?" Kurama asked, confused why Keiko was suddenly looking at him like he just grown to heads or something. What is up with this girl…?

"O-of course, you idiot! Listen, Kurama… you need to be a gentleman, take her out to dinner first, let her have a really romantic evening… a-and then you can ask her to sleep with you."

"… Really? So troublesome…" Kurama mumbled grudgingly to himself. So to sleep in the same bed as Botan, he have to do all that stuff Keiko just said? Humans sure are nasty creatures to force someone to go through such extremes just to sleep in the same room as them. Well, Botan wasn't like that, now was she?

Meanwhile, Botan was about to faint from the confusing conversation. It was clear to her that neither Kurama nor Keiko was on the same boat; they were both thinking different things. She sighed heavily, before turning to look at Yukina, who was quiet the whole time. The smaller girl was listening intently to what was going on, but it was obvious she didn't understand what they were saying.

"You… don't know what they're talking about, do you, Yukina?" she asked.

Yukina shook her head. "No…"

Botan let out tears of happiness, before enveloping Yukina in a hug, further confusing the already confused girl. "That's good, Yukina… Stay innocent like that," she said in utter joy, completely unaware of the crimson eyes glowering down at her.

"You…"

'Huh?' Botan blinked at the sound of a new voice… but it sounded so familiar... Just when she was about to look at the door where it came from, a callous hand pulled her away from Yukina.

"H-Hiei?!"

"What are you doing with my sister?!" Hiei seemed to take what he just saw in the wrong way. Really, it was a good thing he decided to drop by. What was the stupid human doing to his beloved sister? He was glad he was able to stop whatever was about to happen.

Botan caught on to what went through Hiei's head. "I-it's nothing like what you think at all, Hiei…" she tried to calm him down, moving to touch his shoulder but was stopped when Hiei pointed his sharp claws at her. She backed away until her back was pressed against the wall. "H-Hiei?!"

"Don't you dare come close to her…" he growled, and was about to take a step forward to teach the human girl a lesson… only to stop in his movements, when Kurama suddenly moved in front of her, stopping Hiei from advancing any further.

"Hiei… I'll have you know that if you touch my mistress, I can't guarantee you'll leave this apartment unscarred," Kurama growled, low and dangerous, his emerald eyes narrowed, cold and menacing as his nails sharpened into claws, ready to strike back in case Hiei were to attack Botan.

"Kurama… Move aside. That thing did something to my sister, I'm not going to let her off the hook so easily."

"I didn't do anything!"

"Don't talk back to me, mortal!"

Keiko was confused as to what was happening. "Huh? Huh? W-what are you guys talking about? And… aren't you a mortal too?" she asked, as she turned to look at Hiei, who didn't really bother to justify her question with an answer.

"I'm sure you misunderstood the situation, Hiei," Kurama calmly told him, despite the fact he was cracking his knuckles.

"HUH? How the hell would I misunderstand?!" Hiei raised his claws, and was about to strike when Yukina's hand suddenly stopped him.

"Yukina…"

"D-don't fight, big brother…" Yukina said, her voice gentle and weak at the same time. She didn't fully comprehend what was going on, but she knew someone would end up injured in the end. She didn't want them to fight, especially her brother.

"Yukina…" Hiei muttered, before his eyes softened, and he sighed. "Fine, I won't fight. I won't do anything that would make you uncomfortable… little sis," he said gently, as his hand reached up to pat her head, a smile tugging at his lips.

Yukina smiled at his response, leaning in her brother's hand when he started to pat her head. "Thank you, brother."

"Yeah."

Botan, who had been watching the touching brother and sister scene the whole time, couldn't help but notice the different, and loving way Hiei treated his sister. 'Even though he's a vampire… Hiei seems to really love Yukina…'

"Are you hurt?" Kurama spoke, bringing her out of her thoughts.

She blinked for a few times, before turning to look at him. Her mouth formed a bright smile as she nodded her head. "Yeah!"

"Thank goodness," he sighed in relief. He extended a hand out to her, and when she accepted it, he pulled her up. "I was worried Hiei did something to you… I don't know what I'd do if something happened to you…" he whispered in her ear, his words sweet and soft as he rubbed her back. "Hiei… is my friend, but if he hurt you, I would've killed him… I'm just glad that didn't have to happen." He nuzzled his nose against her cheek as he said this.

Botan blushed at the attention he was giving her. She knew he'd protect her always, but she didn't know he cared for her so much that he was willing to go against his friend just for her. She gripped his shirt. Something… strange was building up… inside of her. Her face felt hot, and her heart was beating really fast all of a sudden… She wondered why? "Y-yeah…"

Keiko, who had been watching everything unfold with her own two eyes, didn't feel at all comfortable with the touching scenes in front of her. Why was she the only one watching?! "Y-you guys! Stop that at this instant!" she cried out in exasperation.

The four seemed to pull away at the sound of her voice.

"Who is she?" Hiei questioned, eyes eyeing the brunette with suspicion.

"Botan's and Yukina's friend. And… wait, she's your sister? I didn't know," Kurama said, as if he just realized the fact just now. He would've realized sooner, but he had been concerned over Botan's safety that he didn't notice.

"Ha!" Hiei scoffed. "As if I'd tell you everything."

"Oh." Kurama paused for a moment before asking, "By the way, Hiei, why are you here?"

"I came to pick up my sister," Hiei looked at Yukina as he told him this. "She told me she was going to your mistress' place, so it was only natural as a responsible brother for me to drop by." He smiled when Yukina smiled at him, before turning to look back at Kurama. The smile felled as he gave the redhead a deadpanned look, "It seems she befriended your stupid dog-girl-mistress."

"What did you just call me?!" Botan roared, albeit she was ignored completely by Hiei.

"Oh, well if you're leaving, then I guess it's goodbye," Kurama responded as calm as ever, showing the two siblings the door.

Hiei nodded his head, his hand grabbing his sister's, and was about to walk to the door… when Keiko suddenly stopped them.

Annoyed, Hiei glared daggers at the brunette in an attempt to scare her off. But when Keiko didn't budge at all, a vein dangerously popped at the back of his head.

"What do you want, human?" he growled out.

Keiko blinked twice, before opening the bag she had brought along with her, and fumbling through it. After a while, she found what she was looking for and pulled out what looked like a photo album. "Hold on a minute, I want to come with you. But, I need to give this to Botan first. She left this at my house from the last time she came over."

Hiei didn't want to oblige, but when he saw the puppy eyes look his sister give in, he had no choice but to give in anyway.

This time it was Botan's turn to blink, and she watched as her friend walked towards her. "Here, you left this. I actually came by to give you this, but I nearly forgot… I mean, what's with your babysitter and all," Keiko laughed as she handed the photo album to her.

Botan decided to ignore the babysitter comment and opened the photo album instead, "Thanks, Keiko," she said, and was about to close it, when Keiko suddenly stopped her.

"Huh?" was her confused response.

Keiko didn't give her a reply, and merely skipped through a few pages, as Botan continued to hold the photo album in her hands. She stopped at a page, and started giggling uncontrollably. "You see this, Kurama? This is the time she cried because her ice cream melted… It's really childish, don't you think?" she managed to say between her giggles.

Botan blushed, and in a heartbeat, closed the album before Kurama could look at the picture Keiko had pointed at. "S-shaddup, Keiko! J-just leave already!" she yelled out in frustration and embarrassment, putting the photo album on the kitchen table, and shoving Keiko, along with Hiei and Yukina towards the door. She was thankful Yukina was there because Hiei looked like he was going to kill her when she shoved him…

"Alright, alright, we're leaving!" Keiko retorted, before walking out the apartment, with Hiei and Yukina following behind her.

"See ya later," she said, waving a hand at Botan.

"Yeah…" Botan reluctantly answered back.

"Thank you for letting us stay for awhile. Sorry for the trouble, Botan," Yukina, ever the polite girl, told her.

Botan dismissively waved her hand at the smaller girl. "No, no… it was my pleasure," she responded, ignoring the weird look Keiko gave her because of the different way she responded with Yukina.

"Anyway, it was nice meeting you, Ku…" Keiko's voice trailed off, when she realized he wasn't there. "Huh? Where is Kurama?"

Botan seemed to just now notice this as well. She looked behind her, wondering where the vampire went. "Maybe he's still sitting at the dining table."

"Oh." Keiko looked at her watch, surprised at how late it was. "WAH! Gotta go, Botan. See ya!"

"Sure," Botan said, and watched as her friends walked away. She watched for a little longer until their figures disappeared from her sight, and closed the door, not forgetting to lock it. She turned around…

… and nearly had a heart attack when Kurama just appeared behind her. How long was he standing there?! Her eyes trailed downwards…

And what's more, he was holding the photo album, and it was **opened**. Face turning white, she went to grab it, but was unsuccessful when Kurama raised his hands, putting it in the air, out of her reach.

"D-don't look!" she protested in embarrassment, her face tinted in a red color.

"You really like ice creams, don't you, Botan? A lot of the pictures in this album are pictures of you eating ice cream…"

"T-that was when I was a kid!"

"And not to mention, when you felled and tripped on a rock… Oh, what a cute face. You're crying again."

"Kurama!"

He laughed, deciding to close the album and lower it down when Botan's face was as red as his hair, assuming that he was teasing her too much. "Sorry, I just wanted to see how you were as a child," he told her, while in his mind, he thought… 'I wanted to know how that baby I saw in the past grew up…'

"W-well, if you wanted to know that bad, you could've just asked me," Botan mumbled, her voice low and barely audible, but she knew Kurama caught what she said. Her hands immediately grabbed the photo album, as she added, "Just don't see these pictures!"

"Yeah yeah," Kurama waved her off. "So tell me what your childhood was like," he went on, walking alongside Botan as they sauntered over to the dining table.

She sat down, with Kurama sitting down in front of her. Botan kept the photo album out of the vampire's reach, putting it on her lap, just in case he tried to look inside again. She met his gaze, and was instantly surprised by the excited look on his face. His eyes were as wide as saucers, a pink color tinted his cheeks as he stared intently at her, all ears and waiting for her to say something. 'He really wants to know that bad…' The thought made her heart beat faster again, confusing her once more.

In attempt to calm herself down, Botan cleared her throat, taking her eyes off of Kurama's face. "W-well, where should I start? Umm… I-I went to elementary school, where I met Keiko and became friends with her."

"Oh, I see, so she's a childhood friend of yours," Kurama said in understanding, his mouth forming an 'o' as he nodded his head.

"Yeah, we've been close friends since then. I was the loudest kid in class. I was friends with everyone, then Keiko suddenly transferred. She was really quiet then, unlike how she is now. She didn't talk much, and she was always by herself. What was weird was that nobody tried to talk to her either. I was always drawn to loners, you know, so it was only a matter of time before I started bothering her. I teased her everyday, at first she didn't respond, but as time passed, she opened up a little. We grew close, and she's changed since then."

Kurama continued to listen, as she went on, "Then the two of us met Yukina in middle school. The three of us immediately became friends, and we've been best friends since then. I did everything with them."

The redhead couldn't help the smile that found its way to his face. He could tell she cared very deeply for her friends. Wanting to know more, he asked, "Besides your friends, I want to know something else. Like, what did you like when you were a child – aside from ice cream that is, and what was school like for you. Was there any embarrassing moments, sad moments or happy moments?" he prodded her with more and more questions.

Botan waved her arms at him. "Now now, be patient…"

Kurama, as if he had just snapped out of a trance, blushed deep red when he realized he was acting like a child – getting too excited and all. Embarrassed, he looked away, his blush deepening slightly while he kicked himself in his head for acting so stupid in front of his own mistress. "S-sorry… I just wanted to know… everything about you."

She stared at him, shocked to hear his words. Her heart suddenly started acting weird, thumping loud and fast, and she soon found she was blushing too, all the while wondering why she suddenly felt different around him. Was she sick or something? Or was this that effect thing Kurama was talking about? Maybe this was some kind of effect on her because of the contract… but still…

"A-anyway," she decided to change the subject, "u-um, what was your past like?" she asked back. To be honest, she was wondering how he was like when he was a kid too… She wanted to know a lot of things about him, she just realized she didn't know anything.

But just like that, Kurama's face returned to normal, the blush disappearing in mere seconds after her question popped out. His face darkened, eyes emotionless and mouth forming a thin line. His past… "I don't want to talk about that," he said in a cold tone, getting up from the chair and was about to leave when Botan suddenly grabbed at his sleeve.

"W-what's wrong, Kurama?" she asked worriedly when she noticed he was acting weird out of the blue. Did she ask the wrong question? She bit her lip at the thought… Maybe she offended him in some way… "Do you… not like to talk about your past?" she went on, her voice low but Kurama heard her quite clearly.

His eyes widened, and something snapped inside of him, causing him to tug his sleeve off her hold in a harsh way, earning a gasp from her in return. Botan was about to ask him again what was going on with him, but she didn't manage to say anything as Kurama grabbed her wrist in a vice like grip. She let out a pained gasp, and tried to pull her hand away, "K-Kurama! Let me go! You're hurting me…!"

"Don't ever…" he growled, his hold on her wrist tightening slightly, threatening to break her bones, as he watched her flinch and shut her eyes tight at the pain. "… ask me that again…"

"K-Kurama… stop, you're acting really strange!" Botan cried out in a weak voice, tears starting to form at the back of her eyes at the excruciating pain of his firm hold. The way he was holding her wrist, his claws digging into her skin… It really hurt… She didn't realize she was bleeding until she felt blood trickling down her wrist, dripping onto her green carpet, tainting the once green color into brown as it soaked in… "Kurama, your claws…"

As soon as he caught a whiff of her blood in the air, he snapped out of his anger, letting her go immediately, in shock at what he just did. What was he doing? He backed away, emerald eyes wide as it traveled to her wrist… There were wounds, caused by his claws digging too deep into her skin… she was bleeding, and it was his fault… Wasn't he supposed to be protecting her? Yet why was he the one hurting her?!

"Kurama…" his name came out as a whisper as it passed her lips, filled with worry and confusion. She took a step forward, but he took a step back, bewildering her even more.

"I… I-I'm sorry," was the last thing he said before he ran out of there, opening the window and jumping out. Botan, too shocked by his sudden actions, reacted far too late and yelled out,

"Wait! I-I'm not mad!" but she was too late, he was already gone…

She heaved a sigh, her head downwards as she sat back down at the dining table. Crossing her arms together on the wooden material, she laid her head in her arms, her voice muffled as the words came out of her, "Where are you going…?"

Did she hit a nerve? Was he never going to return again? She didn't know what it was about his past, that made him so angry at her all of a sudden for asking him about it… She figured it was something terrible, but what? She wanted to know… but she was more concerned about where Kurama went.

She was thinking so much that she didn't realize the person sitting cross legged in front of her, until she felt something wet licking at her wound… Her eyes shot open, and in a heartbeat, she lifted her head from her arms… and locked eyes with brown ones. Shocked beyond definitions, she felled from her chair and backed away from the stranger. Her back pressed against the cold hard wall, as she stared wide eyed at the unknown person licking his lips. His hair was slicked back with gel, and if one didn't look close enough, he would've seemed like an average boy… but Botan knew better and upon closer look she noticed the sharp fangs poking out of his mouth.

"You wanna know about his past, don't cha?" he asked all of a sudden, all the while not taking his eyes off of her wounds, the corners of his mouth tugging into a dangerous smirk at the blood trickling down her white skin.

Botan seemed to notice where he was looking, and she immediately hid her arm behind her back, albeit it didn't hide the scent of her blood. Still, what he said piqued her curiosity… "H-how did you know?"

"Hmm, I guess you could say I know that redhead guy," he responded back mysteriously, before pulling out something from his pocket, a dark purple orb with white mist in it.

Amethyst eyes blinked as Botan stared at the object, "W-what is it…?"

"This will help you find out the truth."

"The truth…?"

"Yeah. About his past."

Botan stood up almost instantly as she heard those words. "R-really…?"

He nodded his head, the smirk on his face considerably widening as the reaction she had gave him was as he expected. "Yeah, really."

"W-what's the catch?" Botan asked as soon as she was convinced, but she wasn't stupid enough to think this vampire in front of her was doing all this to help her… without a price, that is.

"Hmm…" the boy tilted his head, his eyes darting to the left in a brief moment, before he averted them back at the girl, his gaze focused on her neck. He gave her a sadistic, yet toothy grin, as he said, "Give me your blood."

"Huh?"

"Give me your blood, and I'll let you use this," he held the orb out to her to emphasize his point, "to find out the thing you want to know most."

She stared long and hard at the orb. Was she really ready and willing to do this…? It would be stupid for her to believe this guy… and she was right after all! He was after a blood. Then again, what vampire wasn't? But if she do this then she could figure out the truth… She wanted to know badly…

After what seemed like an eternity, Botan finally nodded her head in agreement. "Fine, I'll do whatever it takes," she said, her voice full of determination. She didn't have a choice, this could be the only way for her to know… besides, her instincts told her she could trust this vampire, even though she didn't know him.

He smiled at her response. "Alright then, let's get the show started."

"Huh? Y-you're not going to suck my blood…?" Botan asked, confused as she watched the boy stood up, his feet firmly on the table.

"I'll do that after," he responded as he threw the orb a few metres from the table, breaking it into a few pieces, and just as immediately, the white mist inside it, came out, and started to form something that resembled a…

"A-a tunnel…?"

"Yeah, if we go inside this tunnel, it'll take us to his memories," the boy told her, as he jumped down from the table, his hands sliding into his pockets.

"Kurama's memories…" Botan muttered, before gulping. She didn't know what she might see… and she had to admit, she was feeling a little scared…

The boy walked over towards the tunnel, only to stop when he noticed the girl wasn't moving. "What? Don't you wanna know?"

"O-of course!" she stuttered, snapping out of her reverie. She tried to calm herself down, telling herself that she should toughen up… Mustering up all the courage she had, she inhaled a deep breath before nodding to herself with a determined look on her face. "Yosh! Let's go!" she cheered, putting her arm out in the air as she followed the boy as they walked towards the tunnel.

Realizing something, she grabbed onto the boy's sleeve, stopping him. He gave her a questioning look and Botan finally popped the question, "By the way… what's your name?"

And with a toothy grin, much friendlier than the sadistic one before, the boy said…

"Just call me Yusuke."


	5. Chapter 5

**Bitten and Smitten**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho.**

 **Chapter 5**

 **Note!: I'm gonna include Kurama's mother in this chapter, but it's not Shiori! You'll find out as you read along…**

The minute, she entered the tunnel with Yusuke, Botan felt something enter her eyes. She couldn't see, but she could feel her body being pulled further in, a breeze flowing by her body as it flew in mid air. She didn't know what was going on, until she felt her feet touch the ground, a sigh leaving her lips in relief at the knowledge that she was still safe and sound.

Botan's right hand reached up to rub her eyes, and whatever was blocking her vision successfully felled out. Looking at her index finger, she wondered to herself, "Debris?" as she stared at the speck of dust.

Reminded that she came along with somebody else, Botan looked at her right where she thought he would be, but found no one instead. For a moment, she got scared, thinking that she was left alone, until Yusuke's voice reached her ears,

"I'm here," he sounded from her left.

She turned to look at him, a smile tugging at her lips. "Thank goodness, I thought you ditched me," she giggled sheepishly as she said this, a hand scratching the back of her not so scratchy head. She looked around, observing her surroundings, catching sight of the big, white house with thorny vines creeping up the walls, and realizing that the place was not familiar. "Where are we?" she asked, lifting her head to meet Yusuke's gaze.

"Kurama's old house," he simply answered, without taking his eyes off of the huge mansion.

Botan felt as if she now knew at least one thing about Kurama. She gulped, curling her hands into fists and gripping them tightly as she thought of entering. "This is…" her voice trailed off, as contrary to her desire to go in, two figures; one a woman, and the other one a small child came out, the door slowly closing behind them.

"That's Kurama…" she mumbled to herself, as she stared at the little kid, noting the difference between him and the Kurama she knew. His red hair was shorter, reaching only his neck, his emerald eyes seemed brighter and bigger, and his limbs were skinny, not at all like the Kurama he'd grow up to be.

She then averted her eyes to the beautiful woman with a smile beside him. 'That must be his mother…' she mused as she noted her long, red hair, but her eyes were not in the shade of emeralds, and instead, sapphires. 'She's pretty…' but that didn't come out so surprised in her mind; she expected this was what she would see, considering how attractive Kurama was.

Realizing that they were walking towards her and Yusuke, Botan almost panicked. "T-they're gonna see us!" she cried out as she made to move to hide somewhere.

"Relax," Yusuke told her, his hand tugging at her shoulder to stop her movements. "They can't see us, we're invisible," he went on, as she turned to look at him.

Botan's confusion was evident, as she furrowed her brows at him. "Huh? What do you mean?"

"This isn't really happening. We're only seeing his memories. They can't see us because this is just an event from the past, it's not really taking place in the real world," he explained.

"O-oh…" was her only reply, unsure how to respond, but she only watched, feeling like a spectator as the mother and child passed by them. She followed where they went, eyes widening when she was greeted by an unexpected sight.

"Y-Yusuke! That's you!" she screamed out in surprise, her index finger pointing at a direction, as her mouth hung open.

Yusuke followed her gaze, a smirk tugging at his lips as he once again saw his past self. "Don't look so taken aback, will ya? I **did** say I know him, right?" he calmly said, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Botan gawked at him. It wasn't as if she would know! She thought he meant something else when he said that… "H-how should I know?!"

Yusuke didn't respond, and instead observed as the two redheads walked over to where he was. He was there, with his mother standing beside him. He recognized the boy he was seeing with his own two eyes; he didn't use gel then like he was now, and his bangs seemed to cover nearly most of his brown orbs. "This is kinda nostalgic, huh…" he said to no one in particular, sounding as if he was talking to himself and not to Botan, his only company.

"How do you know him, Yusuke?" Botan questioned, her curiosity piqued as she stared at him, waiting for the answer to come.

He paused, averting his eyes to her face and for a moment, she thought he wouldn't tell her. But when he spoke, he had his face turned the other direction, as if trying to avoid her gaze. "My mom was the second wife of Kohei… Kurama's father… so I guess that makes us half brothers."

"What?" Botan's eyes blinked, taken aback by the answer. Half brother? Kurama never told her of such a thing… Why didn't he? She wondered if Yusuke had anything to do with how the redhead acted in her apartment, but decided against asking the black haired vampire. She came here to see what happened, meaning she would find out sooner anyway.

She watched as the scene unfolded…

"Why, hello there, Atsuko," Kurama's mother spoke with the utmost tact, but there was undeniably annoyance lying dormant in the tone she used.

"Yeah, hi, Meiko," the brown haired woman replied, her eyes narrowing as she seemed to have caught on the tone in the redhead lady's voice.

"What are you doing here?" Meiko asked, sounding almost too unwelcoming. Her voice tilted to the side, as the smile on her face considerably widening as her eyes narrowed at Atsuko.

"I'm just strolling around with Yusuke here," Atsuko answered, deciding to ignore the unpleasant way the other woman was treating her and extending her hand out to gesture at her son's way. Yusuke's face brightened up in child like delight, as she did so.

"Yeah!" he chimed in with that innocent child like voice of his, unaware of the hatred Meiko hid and felt towards his own mother. "Me and mom just got back from the garden… You're really amazing, Mrs Meiko! The roses in the garden are really beautiful!" he went on with an excited tone, seeming to like what he saw in the garden situated at the back of the mansion.

Meiko forced a smile as she spoke, albeit a bit as if she was forced to spit out the words as they left her lips, "I'm sure you mean Kurama, little Yusuke. He's the one who has been taking care of the plants, not I. I love gardening, but I haven't done it in a while. He seems to be taking after me, and uses most of his free time tending to the roses." She patted the top of Kurama's head, the little boy purring at the touch in return.

"Wow! You're so awesome, Kurama!" Yusuke blurted out in amazement. "And not to mention, we're the same age too… but I can't do anything you just did with the garden!"

Kurama who had a smile the whole time his mother was patting his head, found that his smile dropped as soon as Yusuke started showering him with praises. Blood rushed to his cheeks, his face turning red in embarrassment after hearing the other boy's words. "I-it's not that particularly amazing, you idiot! I-if you'd like, I-I'd teach you sometime," he stuttered out, the last statement coming out as an offer. After all, the boy seemed to really like his garden… but he was oblivious to the displeased look on Meiko's face.

"Huh? Really? You'd do that?" Yusuke was surprised and happy at the same time. He almost jumped in glee as he stepped closer towards Kurama with a toothy grin attached to his face.

Kurama was taken aback by the other boy's close proximity, stepping back in shock. For a moment, he wasn't sure how to react, feeling slightly shy all of a sudden. He wasn't used to being in other people's presence, seeing as he spent most of his time doing anything his mother wanted him to. She was the only one he talked to besides his father, who was too busy with work to play with him. To say that he was pleased to meet Yusuke would be understandable.

"O-of course, w-we're brothers from now, after all!" Kurama finally responded after a while, albeit it came out as a stammer and he turned his face away, the blush on his face deepening a bit.

Yusuke screamed in utter joy as the redhead confirmed that he would be teaching him how to garden soon. To be honest, he wasn't that excited about the gardening at all. It was true he _was_ amazed by how such a young kid like Kurama could tend to the garden, and made it seemed so beautiful, but he was more than happy to have made friends with him.

Atsuko let out a fit of giggle, amused by how happy Yusuke was and how cute Kurama was as he acted timidly around someone knew. She bent down until she was eye leveled to Kurama, as she put her hands on Yusuke's shoulders, a bright smile finding its way to her lips. "I know it's been only three days since we came… but I hope you take very good care of my little boy, alright, handsome?" she said in a gentle voice, as her hand extended out to pat Kurama's head… only to stop halfway when she caught the anger coming from Meiko, causing her to stand up straight, furrowing her brows at the older woman.

Meiko's teeth were grinding against each other, until she told herself to calm down, and forced a fake smile. "Excuse me, Atsuko, but would you and little Yusuke over here mind leaving my son and I alone for a while? I want to talk to him about something," she suddenly said, earning a confused look from Kurama and he blinked at his mother, wondering what she meant.

Atsuko was reluctant, she didn't get a good vibe from the redheaded woman. But nonetheless, she complied, although after pausing for long moments. "No, not at all, Meiko," she told her, before looking down at Yusuke. "Come on, let's go," she took a hold of his small hand, as she ushered him with her as they made to enter the mansion, away from the other mother and son.

Yusuke wanted to disobey at first. For some reason, he had a bad feeling, as if something bad was about to happen… but when his mother started pulling him by the hand, he had no choice to abide, "Y-yeah…" he complied in a weak voice, not forgetting to send a worried look over his shoulder at Kurama before they started walk away.

Kurama tilted his head at the other boy, silently asking what was wrong. He was confused as to why Yusuke was suddenly acting strange… until he felt the pain of skin hitting hard against skin, his body falling down to the ground at the brute impact. His right hand shakily raised up to touch his cheek, which was now red from being slapped… by his own mother.

"What were you doing?!" she roared in anger, slapping her son hard in the face as soon as Yusuke and Atsuko entered the mansion. Her hands were curled up into fists, shaking uncontrollably as if that one slap wasn't enough to punish him.

"M-mother…" Kurama's voice was weak, as he tried to stand up, stepping closer towards his mother to make to calm her down, despite his fear of what she might do. He ignored the hurt he felt in his heart, as he reached out a hand to her…

"Don't call me that!" Meiko cut off whatever he was trying to say. She gritted her teeth, and slapped Kurama's hand away, pushing the little boy down the ground after she did so.

Kurama felled to the ground, flinching at the pain. Why did she have to do this? He couldn't help but wonder, the hurt in his heart increasing in mere moments. Despite that, he still tried to speak with her… "M-mother, why…? What did I do?" he squeaked out in fear.

Meiko's face darkened, her teeth sharpening into white, sharp fangs as her whole body started to quiver in wrath. "Y-you shouldn't make friends with him… He's the enemy!"

"Enemy…?" He didn't understand. Yusuke was the enemy? What did his mother mean?

"Yes, that's right! He's the enemy… he's here to steal the title of the head of the family from you!... Yet, why…? Why are you being so goddamn friendly with him?!" she roared furiously, her voice getting louder and louder by the minute, stepping towards her son dangerously, her nails changing into claws as Kurama's question had successfully added more fuel to the fire in her heart.

Kurama finally caught on to the reason his mother was being so furious at him. "S-steal…? Mother, you don't understand! Yusuke's not like that!" he tried to convince her, albeit his efforts were unsuccessful and rewarded him with nothing but another slap to the face.

The loud noise resounded, as Meiko's voice raised to a dangerous and higher extent, "It's you who don't understand, Kurama!... Don't talk to me, don't call me 'mother', and don't come near me until you finally get what I'm trying to say. Until then, don't come in the house either, or I swear I'll kick you out," she told him coldly, not acting at all like the mother she should be, and walked passed the little boy calmly, as if she didn't just hit him twice. She didn't seem to care by the way his body was shaking at all, either.

Kurama seemed to be in deep thought, only snapping out after the loud sound of the door being slammed reached his ears, causing his body to jump slightly, surprised that his mother had actually left him alone outside. And not to mention, he couldn't get in either…

He raised his left hand, teeth gritting at the sight of its condition. His skin was peeled off, and blood was coming out rapidly, tainting his white skin in red as it trickled down. This wound… was from being pushed to the ground by his own mother… The thought hurt him badly, but despite how injured he was, both physically and mentally… he stood up.

"I hate this…" he mumbled under his breath, as he walked over towards the back of the house. Maybe he should tend to his plants to cool his head…

Botan gasped at the background, her eyes wide as saucers, the hatred and anger she felt towards Kurama's mother making her body tremble. "H-how dare she…? W-what kind of mother…?" she couldn't continue her words, her voice trailing off everytime she tried to speak, too shocked at what happened in front of her own two eyes, and the wrath inside her making it hard for her to utter out a single word.

Yusuke didn't say anything, only sliding his hands into his pockets, as the view suddenly changed… and took them to a place and a different time he could only recognize as Kurama's garden, where he used to play with him when they were kids.

"This… is such a pretty place," Botan said in amazement, eyes looking around the garden. Roses of all colors, red, white and blue… bloomed well in this place. Kurama took great care of them, that much was clear to her. In spite the shock of what occurred between Kurama's mother and him still hadn't died down, she took in her surroundings… loving how beautiful everything was.

"Hey, hey, Kurama! Look at what I found!" a child's small voice reached her ears, and she watched as Yusuke ran towards Kurama, who was squatting down and examining his lilies.

The redhead arched an eyebrow curiously, and stood up, noticing Yusuke was holding something in his hands, covered by his two small fists and blocking Kurama from seeing what was inside. "What is it?" he asked after a while.

Yusuke gave him a mischievous grin, tinting his brown eyes with the same amount of mischief. Opening his hand a little, he let Kurama peeked inside. "Pretty, isn't it?"

Kurama's eyes widened as soon as he saw what it was, and he tried to pry the other boy's hands to open fully, but it was proven difficult as Yusuke was insisted on not letting go. "Let the butterfly go, Yusuke! You're crushing it, you're killing it!" Kurama cried out in panic.

"Huh? Why?! I tried so hard to catch it… I'm not crushing it!" Yusuke was being stubborn.

Kurama heaved out a sigh when he realized Yusuke wasn't going to let the butterfly go anytime soon. He wondered what to do for a moment, until an idea popped into his head, and he decided to use a different method instead. "Yusuke… you know, if you love something, you have to set it free," he said, all the while holding Yusuke's still curled up hands in his, the corners of his mouth tugging into a small smile.

"Huh? Is that true?" Yusuke was curious, his eyes blinking at his friend and half brother.

"Yeah, I read it in a book." Kurama nodded his head. "And if it loves you back, it'll come back to you," he added.

Yusuke looked down at his small fists, a pout forming at his mouth as he furrowed his eyebrows. "But, it will fly away… and it will never come back…" he mumbled, his eyes almost teary. And he tried really hard to catch the pretty butterfly too… He wasn't sure if he was ready to let it go.

"If it doesn't come back, then maybe it's not supposed to belong to you in the first place," Kurama answered spontaneously. He blinked after he realized what he just said, surprised by his own words. They just came out of nowhere…

But he was glad it worked though, as Yusuke finally complied, albeit after pausing for a few moments, "Alright then, I'll let it go…" he mumbled once again, opening his fists slowly and watching as the butterfly immediately flew out of his hands, its wings taking it up and up in the air and soaring high into the skies.

"Bye bye, little butterfly!" he bid farewell and waved goodbye as it flew.

Kurama smiled, pleased that his plans turned out better than expected. Turning to get back to where he left off with his lilies, he squatted down again.

Little Yusuke stared at the sky for awhile, before turning to look at the other boy and squatting down beside him. "You're really matured, huh, Kurama…"

"Is that so?"

"Yeah…"

"… Well, I guess if you put it that way, then I suppose so."

"Even the way you talk sounds like an adult sometimes."

"Really?"

"Yeah…"

"Oh."

The two children were silent for a few moments… until Yusuke got bored, and started tickling the other boy. Kurama felled to the ground, surprised by the sudden 'attack' and started laughing out loud as Yusuke continued to tickle his sides. "S-stop it…!" he tried to protest in between his fit of laughter, with Yusuke sitting on him and snickering down at him, pleased by the redhead's reaction.

Yusuke's fingers brushed a sensitive spot, and Kurama inhaled a deep breath to stop himself from laughing louder. He was afraid the sound would attract unwanted attention. "W-wait, stop it, please! My mother will…!"

As if it was a coincidence, his words came true, as the sound of a woman clearing her throat interrupted them. Yusuke stopped tickling, and Kurama stopped laughing as the two kids looked up from their position, and was greeted by the sight of Meiko crossing her arms in front of them.

"M-mother…"

"Mrs Meiko…"

"What are you boys doing? You'll get dirt all over your clothes if you continue to lie on the ground!" the woman reprimanded them.

As if on instincts, Yusuke immediately got off of Kurama, granting the latter the ability to finally stand up fully.

"Yusuke… your mother wants you in the house, she says to see her now," she gestured to the little black haired boy, before walking over to where they were, eyes averting at Kurama and focusing on his little form that had somewhat started trembling out of control. "Honestly, this is where you boys have been playing at this whole time… It took me forever to find you…" she muttered under her breath.

"O-okay…" Young Yusuke complied, before turning to look at Kurama, eyebrows perking up in bewilderment and curiosity as he noticed Kurama suddenly started shaking uncontrollably. Realizing something was wrong, Yusuke asked worriedly and reached a hand out to touch the other boy's shoulder. "Hey, Kurama, are you alrigh…" his voice trailed off, as another hand – Meiko's hand – came to rest on Kurama's shoulder, stopping him from advancing any further.

"Now, Yusuke…" Meiko said, almost all too sweetly for anyone's taste, "… you wouldn't want to keep your mother waiting, would you?"

"N-no…"

"Very good. Run along then," Using her other hand, she used it to push the black haired little boy gently out of the way, all the while trying to hold herself back from pushing him harshly.

"Alright…" Yusuke reluctantly mumbled, looking over at his shoulder at Kurama for a moment. He could tell that something was wrong with Kurama, but he didn't want to keep his mother waiting either… Sighing as he was forced to leave his friend be, Yusuke walked towards the house.

A moment of silence passed the mother and son, before Meiko finally broke it off, "What were you doing?" she inquired coldly, as soon as she was convinced that Yusuke was out of sight and could not hear what she was about to say.

"Y-Yusuke was only trying to joke—" He was cut off, as Meiko hit him square in the head. He shut his eyes, flinching as his head moved to the side from the force.

"You listen to me, stop being friends with him. It seems you still don't fully understand what I said the first time… You never get it through your thick head no matter how many times I've told you not to be friends with him! He's your enemy, your enemy!" she continued to shout at him.

"B-but…"

"No buts! Instead of playing with Yusuke, why don't you just study?"

Kurama's head dropped low, as he stared down at his feet, his voice equally as low and barely audible, as he weakly mumbled, "But all I've been doing is study…"

Meiko's hand grabbed his ear in an instant as he said that, turning the soft part of her son's body, and inflicting pain on him as he flinched once again.

"M-mother!" he cried out to her.

"I told you before, didn't I? Don't call me mother… As long as you remain friends with that _thing_ ," she paused, referring to Yusuke, as her other hand grabbed at his throat, "don't you ever call me by that, ever again," she went on in a cold voice, hands squeezing tightly on Kurama's neck.

"M-mother, you're choking me…!" Kurama desperately cried out between coughs, his small hands trying to pry her hand off his neck, "I-it hurts!"

"HUH? It hurts, you said? Do you want me to stop?" she taunted him.

"Yes, yes! Please…!" the poor little boy continued to beg.

"Alright, fine. I'll let you go… if you say you'll stop being friends with that Yusuke boy, and that you'll study everytime I ask you to and not to disobey me… then I'll stop. If you don't…" she stopped, knowing fully well that her son understood what the consequences would be if he were to turn against her.

Kurama wanted to cry, but he held back the tears… and merely tried to force out the words, "I-I'm sorry, Mother… I'll stop talking to Yusuke—" When she squeezed again, he coughed. He bit his lower lip, his fangs breaking into the skin. Blood trickled down his chin, yet he still tried to speak, "—I-I'll do anything you want… and I won't disobey you… So please, please let me go… I-I can't breathe…" the boy begged in a weak voice. He felt his head spinning; he was starting to feel faint…

Thankfully, the woman did as he told her to, letting go of him and letting the boy fall to the ground as she did so. Her other hand let go of his ear, as she crossed her arms over her clothed chest. "That's a good boy, now go study," she didn't even wait for him to catch his breath, as she tugged him by the arm, and pulled him up, although the way she did it was harsh.

"Y-yes, mother…" Kurama complied, even though his throat hurt. Small fits of cough came out of him for a few moments, but disappeared as soon as he regained his breath… He reached up to rub his throat, swallowing down a lump before starting to walk out of the garden… to do as his mother said.

"H-how could she… be so cruel…?" Botan, who had been watching all the scenes unfold with her own eyes, couldn't believe this was what Kurama's past was like. No wonder he didn't want to tell her, with a mother like that… She held a hand at her mouth to stifle a sob, as tears suddenly started to cascade down her soft cheeks. "K-Kurama… was her son…"

"She never considered him to be her son," Yusuke's voice piped up, and she looked at him questioningly. He didn't seem to notice, as he was too busy staring at little Kurama's hunched back as he continued to walk away… 'Kurama, you…'

His thoughts were cut short when Botan suddenly tugged at his shoulders. Looking down to see the girl's face, he was almost surprised when he saw that she was crying. "H-hey…"

"H-how…? Why did she do all those things? She was his mother… He was a still so young…" her voice seemed to crack, as those words passed her lips.

Yusuke's brown eyes softened, before he turned his face away from her once again. His bangs covering his eyes, his mouth in a thin line as he spoke, "Kurama's mother was… ill."

"Ill…?" Botan echoed, confused as to what disease the woman had that made her be so cruel to her flesh and blood.

He nodded his head. "Kurama's dad… used to beat her a lot, and that inflicted pain on her, and caused mental stress on her… She grew mentally unstable, and started taking it out on Kurama… When Kurama's dad married my mother and we moved in, her treatment started getting worse… She'd compare between me and Kurama, since one day that one of us would inevitably become the next head of the family. Everything was a competition to her; she wanted to see who was smarter, who was better at sports… she wanted Kurama to be number one at everything, so she pushed everything on him. Studies, and other things… he didn't even get to play much when he was a kid. He was still a little boy, but he was forced to do all sorts of things a boy shouldn't… He was forced to take too much responsibility, despite his age…"

Yusuke's head slowly turned, his eyes appearing out of his bangs, as he looked down at Botan. His brown orbs locked with her wide amethyst ones, and he inhaled a deep breath before saying to her:

"He had a rough childhood, having that monster as a mother."


	6. Chapter 6

**Bitten and Smitten**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho.**

 **Chapter 6**

Botan bit her lower lip, she didn't know what to say and she didn't trust her voice right now. Everything that she had seen until now was all unbelievable and shocking. She wasn't sure if she was willing to continue watching Kurama's memories, and as much as she wanted to tell Yusuke that they should stop, she couldn't. Her body was frozen in place and her mouth wouldn't open no matter how much she wanted them to. So, she stood still and watched as the scene changed again.

She looked around the hallway; pictures hung in golden frames hung on the walls with blue butterflies printed on them, the pretty roses in big, long vases and the blue curtains blocking the sunlight from entering. But what seemed to attract her attention the most was one photo of a happy Kurama with his mother; they were both smiling and Meiko had her arms wrapped around him. She smiled, despite knowing that the reality and the photo were completely different.

A loud bang sounded in the mansion, echoing and rattling the walls. She averted her gaze at the sound, and saw Kurama at the door. He looked older, his hair growing to reach his shoulder and tied in a small ponytail. Then, she realized he had slammed the door. The picture she had been staring at fell and its glass broke. Botan, in spite of being surprised, bent down and reached to pick the photo up. However, she stopped halfway as she noticed someone's feet in front of her. Looking up instantly, she locked eyes with Kurama who was glowering down at her and for a moment, she thought he knew she was there only to realize that he was actually looking at the picture frame.

Botan stood up and backed away in instincts; then, she watched with eyes wide as saucers as Kurama stomped his foot on it, and gritted his teeth. She extended a hand to stop him but Yusuke grabbed her firmly by the shoulder. Turning her head at him, she gave him a frown.

"Whatever you say won't reach him," he told her, before loosening his hold on her, "He can't see you anyway."

"But—"

"Come back here, you stupid little brat!" An angry yell cut her sentence short, and she turned to look at the door; there stood Meiko who had her arms crossed, and her face twisted in pure wrath.

Kurama stopped, and looked straight into Meiko's eyes with equal animosity, "I am not going to follow any of your orders anymore! I'm sick of this shit!" he cursed savagely, before turning around to walk away, intending to leave the house so he didn't have to look at his sorry excuse for a mother.

"I'm not going to tolerate this behavior!" Meiko grabbed his arm harshly before he could take another step and glared back as he stared at her with daggers. "If you want to leave, I will not let you. In a few years, you'll be the head of this household and I won't let you defy—"

"Don't you get it?!" Kurama raised his voice, catching his mother off guard and he took that opportunity to tug his arm out of her vice like grasp. He heatedly stare at her, and continued, with a voice full of hatred, "I don't want to be the head of this household! If you want the title that much, why don't you take it?! I'm leaving and you can't stop me!"

He started to walk, and Meiko instantly regained her composure. The raging fire inside her burned furiously as she yelled with fury at her son, "No, you will not and that's final!" Then, she made to tug at him again, but was stopped as Kurama slapped her hand away.

He stared at her in disgust and contempt. This woman standing in front of him was no longer what he could call a mother; she was a monster and she was an insane one at that. She did nothing but force her ideals on him and threatened to take away his life. He would have none of that anymore. He was going to leave this hellhole and she wasn't going to stop him.

"You're wrong, mother," he growled, low and dangerous, and looking away from her, he finished, "I'm going and _that_ 's final."

And he thought that was the end of it… he truly did until a hand gripped tightly at his throat, and forced him to turn the other way. He tried to pry the hand off his neck, but to no avail, as its hold was too strong.

Meiko glared with red eyes as she tightened her hold. "If you take another step, I swear I'll kill you! God help you because I'm serious!"

"I thought you didn't believe in God?" another voice spoke, and Meiko turned to look at who it was. But, she didn't manage to as she was instantly stabbed with something sharp in the head, making her lose her grip on Kurama's neck and fell to the floor.

Kurama coughed twice before inhaling greedily for air. He looked down at his mother's form, backing away from the blood trailing to his feet. There she was, with a knife deep into her head, and bleeding to death. He quickly looked at who did such a thing to her, surprised to see Yusuke standing in front of him.

"Y-Yusuke…"

"Kurama," Yusuke responded, and after breathing a sigh of relief, the corners of his mouth curved upwards into a grin. "Are you okay?" he asked, not in the least bit concerned about the body of Meiko which now laid almost lifelessly on the ground.

"I-I'm fine," Kurama sputtered, the shock in him still not dying down and confusion rising in him. "Y-you killed her," he went on in disbelieve, his eyes now gazing at his mother. The smell of her blood filled his nostrils, and despite the tempting scent, it still bothered him. He swallowed a lump in his throat, and taking a deep breath, he spoke again, this time sounding a little calmer than before, "Why?"

"I didn't know what to do. She was strangling you," Yusuke replied, following Kurama's gaze, and with a sadistic smile, he added, "I've never liked her anyway. Always controlling you, and doing bad things to you… She also tried to bring my mom down a few times… and to be honest, I don't feel guilty at all."

He lifted his gaze, now focusing it on the unreadable expression on Kurama's face. He couldn't tell what he was thinking – he just stood there, staring down at his mother with emotionless eyes, and unable to take it anymore, Yusuke finally asked, "How do you feel? Are you… pissed off?"

"At whom?" Kurama laughingly replied, and then, looked away from Meiko's figure, giving Yusuke a grin of what seemed to be half bitter and half relieved. "At you? Of course not. You've freed me, Yusuke. I no longer have to deal with her and I can start a new life where I can finally do what I want, without being forced to live a life others want me to. I feel nothing. Maybe… just maybe, I'm a little sad, because she used to be a loving and caring mother whom I used to love very dearly… but after all she's done, I mostly feel glad. Because I'm free now; I'm not a caged bird anymore and she's no longer here. She's gone, out of my life."

He laughed again, which for some reason, unnerved Yusuke. "I can finally leave… after being stuck here for forever, I can finally get out of this horrid place." His grin widening slightly, Kurama spoke to Yusuke, his head tilted slightly as he gave him a curious look, "Would you like to come along, Yusuke?"

Yusuke snapped out of his thoughts at the sound of his half brother's voice. Trying to smile and finally finding his voice again, with a lopsided grin on his face, he responded, "Yeah., but we have to bring my mom with us."

"Sure."

He followed as Kurama started to walk away, but a couple of paces away from Meiko's lifeless – or _seemingly_ lifeless – body, he felt a hand grabbed at his leg.

Surprised, he tripped and fell face first to the ground. Kurama stopped in his tracks at the sound caused by the impact, and seeing Yusuke on the floor, questioned in worry, "Are you alright? What happened?"

"I-I don't know," Yusuke answered in confusion, but then he looked down at his leg, and was shocked and horrified to see Meiko – still half alive, despite losing a lot of blood and holding to his leg. He tried to jerk it out of her grasp, but her hold merely tightened the more he struggled. "What the fuck—This stupid goddamn bitch! Get off of me!" he cried out, still trying to pull away.

His efforts were futile and Meiko only made a creepy laugh, and much to his horror, started to pull him closer to her. "You and your mother—you're all the same, you're all out to get me! I'll kill all of you! I'll kill you all!"

Yusuke was frantic, and bending down, he was about to pry her hand off of his leg, but he stopped halfway when Kurama's voice sounded…

"Yusuke! Watch out!"

And on impulse, he pulled his hand away, at the exact moment an axe came crushing down Meiko's, cutting it off and causing excessive bleeding. Blood splattered on the walls, coloring the once ocean blue color into deep crimson. His eyes widened into saucers, and Yusuke lifted his head slowly and saw Kurama holding the axe, a satisfied smirk plastered on his face, despite the blood dripping on his skin – and it wasn't _his_ blood, it was his mother's. The one who he just amputated a hand from with an axe; his own flesh and blood and the woman who gave birth to him.

Lifting the axe high up in air, he brought it down on her again in a swift motion – and cut off her head. Blood came spilling out, splattering on his upper torso and dirtying his clothes. With his grin widening, and his sharp, white fangs showing, he laughed, "It's so ironic," he started, loosening his hold around the axe, letting it fall to the floor next to his feet as he raised a hand to licked at the red liquid there, "She was the one who gave me life – and I ended hers."

Turning to look at Yusuke with a look unlike his usual self, he disturbingly asked, "How funny is _that_?"

"Kurama…" Yusuke stood up, despite his trembling legs and extended a shaky hand to touch at the redhead's shoulder. He focused his gaze on Kurama, unwilling to look at Meiko's head which rolled to his right feet, and in a quiet voice, he said, "L-let's go…"

But Kurama only laughed. He didn't even move from his spot. Seconds ticked by, and he didn't move a muscle, in spite of Yusuke tugging at his shoulders and trying to snap him out of it. He laughed and laughed. On the inside, something broke in him – he didn't know what; perhaps it was his own heart or his mind shattering into pieces, but he didn't care. He just stood there and laughed at his mother's headless body.

… It _was_ ironic.

Botan clasped both her hands to her mouth to stifle the scream that had threatened to come out of her. She—she couldn't believe it. Kurama just murdered his own mother—with an axe. And she had stood by and watched. Without her realizing it, tears rolled down her cheeks and she backed away until she was against the wall as she realized and understood it now—it was Meiko who had driven him to do this. It was Meiko's death threats and monstrosity which made him do this. She raised Kurama into this—this _broken_ child. Realizing that made it much worse, and her knees watered, and in mere seconds, she felled to the cold, hard floor, her head hung low. She didn't know how Yusuke was reacting, seeing all this bad memories again and she _didn't_ want to see. The scene started to change, and she was still unwilling to look up – either at what would happen, and at Yusuke's face.

As everything started to turn different around her, Kurama's laughter drifted off, slowly and slowly getting further and further away… until she finally couldn't hear it anymore. Then, she decided this was enough. She couldn't bear to watch anymore of this. Standing up shakily, she dusted off the dirt from her clothes and opened her mouth to finally tell Yusuke to stop all of this in an instant… but she couldn't quite find her voice as she found herself staring at Kurama – and he was cornering a cowering human. At that moment, she froze again and nothing came out from her lips.

"K-Kurama…" At the sight of him raising his claws, and the all too sadistic smile on his face, Botan caught on to what he was about to do, and ran towards him, all the while ignoring Yusuke's cry for her to stop. She knew he told her that whatever she would say to Kurama, he wouldn't hear it. But, she couldn't stand seeing him doing this – she didn't want to see him killing anyone anymore.

And in a heartbeat, she was already standing between him and the human.

"Stop it, Kurama!" she cried out desperately, "You don't have to do this! H-he didn't do anything!"

Kurama's low and dark chuckle echoed into her ears, and his cold voice cut through her like a knife at it sounded, "You don't have anywhere to run anymore."

"No—no! Stop! I-I'm begging you! Please! Don't kill me!" the human begged in fear and desperation, kneeling down on his hands and knees.

"You're only livestock," Kurama smirked. "Why should I consider sparing your life?"

"I-I don't wanna die!"

"Too bad," Advancing forward menacingly, Kurama's clawed fingers twitched as his fangs glistened under the moonlight, "Because you will."

"No, Kurama! Don't!" Botan screamed, her pleas in sync with the human's begging for his life. She tugged at his shirt, gripping tightly onto it and with teary eyes, enveloped him in a hug, in a failed attempt to stop him from moving another step. "This isn't something you would do! Stop it, Kurama! Don't do it!"

He took another step – and walked right through her. Botan, taken by surprise at what just occurred, and at the feeling of his body passing through her, couldn't move. Then, at his chuckle, and the sound of the poor human's pleas, she snapped out of her thoughts and back into reality. Unwilling to give up just yet, she moved in front of him and hugged him once again. This time, she gripped tighter and buried her head into his chest as hot tears started to cascade down her soft cheeks.

"Stop! This isn't the Kurama I know! STOP IT!"

And, as if hearing her screams, Kurama _did_ stop. His footsteps came into a halt, and his body turned into a rigid line. He froze in spot, and Botan lifted her head to look at him. He was looking at her, his eyes wide in a mixture of shock and bewilderment, and his mouth hung open slightly.

Yusuke, who had been watching the whole scene unfold before his own two eyes, broadened his eyes in surprise. He watched as Kurama's hand fell limply to the side, and the brows at his forehead furrowing as he stared down at Botan's face – which seemed to reflect the one Yusuke had right now. Then, the realization hit him like a ton of bricks:

"H-he can see her?"

But how?

That was impossible!

He wasn't supposed to be able to see her. And yet…

"You there!" A voice broke the deafening silence, cutting through it like knife through butter, and bringing them into reality.

Kurama turned his head to look at the stranger, a frown finding itself embedded to his forehead. Botan and Yusuke followed his gaze, the latter staring at the man in front of them in confusion. He had blue hair, much like hers, except in a darker color and amethyst eyes that strikingly resembled hers—then she realized; could he be…?

The redhead gritted his fangs at the human. "You're mortal, aren't you…? Who the hell do you think you are?" he snarled.

"Oh?" The man tilted his head to the side, a grin appearing on his face as his amethyst orbs danced in mirth, "Did I disturb you in the middle of feeding?"

"The hell you didn't!" Kurama growled, low and dangerous. His amethyst eyes narrowed as he cast a suspicious look on the curve of the man's lips. He was smiling; and he seemed to know what Kurama was. Wasn't he afraid?

"What do you want?" Kurama asked in a savage voice. "Did you come here with a death wish or something?"

The man's grin visibly widened. "I've come here to discuss—ahem— _business_ with you."

"Huh? Business?"

"Yes," the man answered mysteriously, before sparing a brief glance at the cowering human kneeling in front of the redheaded vampire. He averted his gaze back at Kurama, and with a silky voice, politely told him, "However, I must ask you to first let him go."

Kurama's face hardened. "Like hell I will," he retorted in a harsh voice.

"If you do," the man started, the grin on his face replaced by a smirk; challenging and secretive at the same time, "I will offer you a deal you won't be able to resist."

Kurama's eyebrows furrowed. "A deal? What do you mean?"

"Let the innocent man go," he told him, "and then I'll tell you."

"Ha!" Kurama scoffed, turning his nose up in the air as he stared at the man with a suspicious looks in his deep green orbs, "Why should I do that? And how would I know that your deal is good enough for me to spare this pathetic mortal's life," he cast a disgusted glance at his still shaking prey before looking back at the mysterious man, "Well?"

"Well, you let him _safely_ walk away from here, and I will tell you what I have in mind – and if you're unsatisfied, you can kill me any moment," the man told him with a smile, despite knowing what he just said was no light matter.

Kurama stared at him with wide eyes in confusion before it was quickly replaced by humor. A burst of laughter erupted from his chest, and he laughingly remarked, "So you're willing to give me _your_ life in exchange for _his_?"

"Only if you don't agree with the terms of the deal I'm about to make with you."

"Hmm," Kurama hummed, his emerald orbs glinting in interest, "I see. Well then," he then turned to look at his prey, before giving him a smirk, "I'll give you three seconds to get out of here before I dig my claws deep into your chest and puncture a hole into your heart."

At Kurama's cold voice, and his threats, the human quickly stood up from the dirty ground. His legs were trembling, but he ran as fast as possible from there. Not forgetting to say thank you to the man who had apparently saved his life.

"So?" Kurama arched an eyebrow at the man, his mouth turning upwards into another smirk, "What is the deal?"

"A contract; between you and I," the man answered.

Another red eyebrow arch at the man's words, and Kurama pondered for a moment, "A contract between a human and a vampire?" At his nod, Kurama resisted the urge to laugh again, stifling it and instead, settled with broadening his smirk, "You _do_ realize there are consequences to such things, don't you?"

"Yes."

"And you're still willing to go with it?"

"Yes."

"Why?" Kurama questioned once again, wondering how deep this unknown man's resolve to make a contract with him that he had responded his every inquiry with an unhesitant 'yes'.

"Because, you see, the blood running through my veins is a rather unique one. There's power in my blood and many are after it, and I am hunted by vampires, all day and all night. And I need protection," he paused, the smile that had never left his lips disappearing in mere seconds, " _Your_ protection from them."

"Huh?" Kurama wasn't sure if he heard that right. "You want to sign a contract with me for… protection?"

"Yes, that's right," the man told him in a matter of factly way, as if what he had just said wasn't strange in the slightest bit. His smile returned, even as a disbelieving grin found its way to the vampire's features.

"Ha-ha!" Kurama laughed hard, inwardly debating to himself if this human was crazy. "I think you don't understand what's going on here," he spoke as soon as his laughter subsided, "Why the hell are you asking me? I'm a vampire!"

"That's exactly why I'm asking you to it," the man stated seriously, paying little to no mind to the way Kurama was looking at him as if he had just lost his mind, "Protect me, and my family blood is yours."

Kurama bit his lip to stifle another chuckle from erupting from his throat; wondering if the man was joking, but then… he looked at his face, making eye contact with the pair of amethyst – and realized that this was no joke. He was serious.

His eyes told him that much.

There was no mirth, but merely pure determination in them, and that was enough to convince him that the man _was_ actually taking this serious.

"You…" he said quietly after finally finding his voice, but he knew the weird man heard him quite clearly, "How do you know I won't use it for evil?"

The man laughed all of a sudden, surprising and bewildering him even further. "A gut feeling."

"Huh?" Kurama nearly screamed bloody murder, unwilling to believe that _that_ was the only reason he was willing to trust him – a vampire. This man really was crazy.

Still, even as he continued to laugh, and asked him, 'Well?', Kurama found himself saying, "I don't know what you're up to," and his gaze traveled to the man's neck, the sweet scent of his blood practically beckoning the vampire closer, "but if I can have that power all to myself, then I'll happily oblige."

He started to move, breaking Botan – who had been watching the whole scene with wide eyes – out of her reverie. Snapping out of her thoughts at the feeling of him pulling away, Botan extended a hand at him… but pulled back, as she realized, this was the beginning. The beginning of his life with a man who had offered his blood in return for his protection. The man… her great grandfather…

She watched as Kurama walked towards the man, before turning around to gaze dazedly at the spot she stood. She almost jumped at his sudden stare, and again, assumed he could see her.

Her great grandfather seemed to notice Kurama's suddenly weird behavior, and followed the vampire's gaze. He saw nothing and frowned, before looking back at the vampire's face. "What is it?" he asked.

"Huh?" Kurama stupidly replied, as if he had just snapped out of a trance. Shaking his head, an amused chuckle started to escape him, "I don't know, but… for some reason, I thought I heard someone calling my name…"

"And you thought that someone is standing over there?" the man pondered, averting his eyes to the empty spot Kurama's gaze still remained on.

"Maybe," he heard the redhead say, and he turned to look at him.

Kurama's lips moved up into a lopsided grin.

"Then again, guess not."

And with that, the whole scene disappeared. Nothing came into her view after that, and before she realized it, she was back in her apartment. Realizing that was the end of it, Botan opened her mouth to say something, but no words were uttered, and instead, Yusuke was the one who spoke.

"After that, he just disappeared out of nowhere. He left me and my mom nothing but a letter about what happened. I looked him for years," Yusuke dug his hands into the warmth of his pockets, a small smile finding its way to his features, "and then, after what seemed like ages, I finally found him. But I couldn't do anything; I just watched over him. He doesn't know. Well, maybe he does, but I don't think so. I wanted to approach him and punch him in the face for being stupid enough to form a contract with a human, even when he should've known better and I had a lot of things to say to him. I still do. But… I just couldn't."

"Why?" Botan quietly asked.

"My mom… had gotten ill. I couldn't leave her alone," and then, he let out a chuckle, "Plus, I couldn't really destroy the trust that had developed between him and your family. He's changed… after being with you guys. I guess I was kinda grateful for that, so I let your family keep him."

"… Changed?"

"Yeah," Yusuke's grin felled, "You see, after he… killed Meiko, he just… I don't know," Botan watched as he ran a hand through his black hair, and exhaled a heavy sigh, "He became someone I couldn't recognize, a monster. He killed countless humans, and they were all innocent. He just… wasn't Kurama."

Botan understood what Yusuke meant, and looked down at her feet. She bit the insides of her mouth; she still couldn't believe _that_ was Kurama.

Seeing the crestfallen face the girl made, Yusuke couldn't help but added, "But the longer he was with your family… I could tell the more he regained his usual self. The old Kurama. He changed back into the way he used to be, and that… that was fantastic."

"So thank you," As Botan listened to those three words that passed his lips, she lifted her head to meet his gaze. He was smiling at her; just like his eyes were. She couldn't help but smile back.

"I'm not the one you should thank," she laughingly told him, and waved her arms in front of her, "It was my great grandfather, grandmother and father you owe your thanks to."

"I'll be sure to visit their graves."

"Ha-ha. Funny, Yusuke."

The vampire in question wholeheartedly laugh for a few moments, before regaining his composure, and gave the girl a grin. He slid his hands out of his pockets, and took a step closer towards her, "Anyway, you didn't forget your part of the bargain, right?"

"My… part of the bargain…?" Botan's voice seemed to trail off as she realized his body was only inches away from hers.

"Yeah, you said you would give me your blood, remember?" Yusuke reminded her, his grin widening slightly as her eyes widened in recognition.

"O-oh, right," she sputtered. She couldn't believe she actually forgot about that. Nervous and afraid at the same time, but knowing she had to fulfill her part of the deal, Botan shakily slid her hair back, exposing her pearl white neck. She gulped, shutting her eyes tight and waited for the pain of fangs digging into her skin… only to freeze when he trailed his sharp claws along her jaw line, before moving to her neck, brushing against her skin…

Botan thought for a moment that he would dig his nails into her throat, but then, he pulled his hand away, and grabbed hers instead. She opened her eyes at the sudden contact, and lifted her head to look at Yusuke with a deep and confused frown embedded on her forehead.

He smiled, and the next thing she knew, she felt something sharp digging into the skin of her palm… It didn't take her that long to realize that it was his claws. Taken by surprise by the needling pain, Botan quickly pulled her hand out of his grasp.

She backed away from him on impulse, until she felt something hard against the contours of her back. She realized it was the wall, and while trying to calm the loud thumping of her heart in fear, lifted her hand.

Blood was trickling down her skin from the holes he made on her palm.

"That should do it," she heard Yusuke say.

Getting further and further confused, Botan couldn't help but demand an answer for him, "W-what was that for?!"

"Relax," Yusuke calmly told her, as if he didn't just her. She glared at him, but he remained unnerved… and to think she was about to offer him her blood. "I never had any interest in drinking your blood, Botan," this time his voice was gentle as he spoke.

Botan frowned, still confused and not understanding what he meant. "I-I thought you…"

Yusuke cut her off, his voice serious, "My half brother practically endangered himself to protect you… I'm not going to let all his efforts go to waste. Which I know they would, if I were to suck your blood."

"B-but then… why did you…"

"I only told you I wanted to drink your blood as part of the bargain, because I know you wouldn't believe me if I told you I wanted nothing in return."

Botan opened her mouth to make a remark about his statement, but then realized he was actually true. She wouldn't have trusted him if he had told her there was no catch. Then, she asked, "So… why did you do that to my hand?"

The corners of Yusuke's mouth curved upwards, reaching his ears and exposing his pearl white teeth and the dangerous, glistening fangs, "I just wanted to get Kurama over here."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, it would be dangerous if I left you alone here. He could smell your blood and would be here the minute he would. If he was here with you, no vampire could come close to you. During times like these, you wouldn't know if there was one nearby. Plus," Yusuke paused, his grin considerably broadened as he added,

"I wanted to see him in person."

* * *

Kurama groaned and let out a savage curse. He was on top of a roof, sitting there with one knee turned up and his right arm on the said knee – still angry at himself for hurting her. Her. Botan. His mistress.

Wasn't he supposed to be the one protecting her…? And yet, he…

Frustrated, he ran a hand through his red locks, a loud and exasperated sigh escaping her. He wondered briefly if she would forgive him. He couldn't believe himself for doing that to her. Even _he_ couldn't forgive himself, surely, she wouldn't? The thought frightened him, but he knew he would have to inevitably return to her sooner. It would be a danger to her life if he were to leave her alone right now… At the reminder that he had just left her alone at night, when most vampires were active, he cursed himself again. He literally just fueled the fire inside of him even further.

Why did he run out like that? He pondered grudgingly despite already knowing the reason:

He was scared. Frightened how she would react if she knew of his past. He didn't know how she would take it. He didn't want her to know the monster he was, he didn't want her to hate him. He wasn't sure why, but he was more concerned about her than his previous masters. She was just so different for some reason. That beautiful, alluring—

His thoughts were cut short when he caught a familiar scent, alarming his senses. He stood up in a swift movement, looking at the direction where Botan's apartment was. Afraid that something might've happened to her, Kurama quickly made his way to rescue her. Forgetting all about his initial worries about his past.

* * *

"Are you sure he would come?" Botan found herself asking before she even realized the question had escaped her lips. She bit her lower lip, casting her eyes downwards.

"Why wouldn't he be?" Yusuke responded curiously.

"I mean, he was so furious at me…" she mumbled under her breath.

The black haired vampire couldn't help the smile that appeared on his features at her worried statement. "Trust me, he _will_ be here," he reassured her.

And the moment those words passed his lips, he heard a thud behind him. The smile turned into a smirk, and he added, "See?" he told her, but then, turned around slowly to look and there he was; Kurama, panting heavily, as if he just ran all the way here. He probably did, Yusuke assumed in humor to himself.

"Y-Yusuke…" Kurama sputtered in disbelieve as he realized the one standing before him was no threat, but his own half brother. He hadn't seen him for… centuries. Despite the questions that started to appear in his mind, he soon noticed Botan standing right behind Yusuke. Forgetting all about Yusuke, he fast walked towards her, sauntering past Yusuke who gave him a brief smirk.

"A-are you alright?" he asked breathily, still out of breath.

Botan nodded her head hesitantly, looking up at him with a worried look. "Are you… angry?"

"What? No, the hell I am!" he retorted harshly, surprising her. But then, he gently took her hand, and examined it. He rubbed a finger over the skin palm, noting to himself for a brief moment how soft it was, before questioning, "Who did this to you?" in spite of knowing who it was already.

She was hesitant to respond at first, thinking that he might get into a fight with Yusuke if she told him. She didn't want that, especially after they just met again after long years. However, at the half stern and half desperate – as if he was begging her to answer – look he gave her, Botan couldn't help herself,

"Y-Yusuke…" and then, she quickly added in a frantic voice, "B-but he didn't mean to—"

She was too late; Kurama already had his back facing her, cutting her off as he asked in a gentle yet firm voice, his eyes narrowed dangerously at the form of his half brother, "What is the meaning of this, Yusuke?"

"The meaning?" Yusuke laughed. "There's _no_ meaning. I did that so you'd come back. I can't believe you ran away like a wimp when she mentioned about your past."

"That was reckless of you. Didn't you think of what would've happened if you were another vampire? I would've killed you and—" He exhaled a deep sigh, his eyes softening slightly, "—how did you find me?"

"I found you years ago," Yusuke told him, half laughingly and half grudgingly, "I've been watching you."

"Then why didn't you say anything?"

"I was afraid of leaving mom alone. She was sick. So as much as I wanted to get into a fight with you and show you how fucking pissed I was… I couldn't. I had to think about her well being. She was already dying—I couldn't do anything that would worry her."

"Atsuko's… sick? How?! Why?" Kurama was alarmed.

"Ha-ha… After you were gone for a week, she was accidentally poisoned when she got into a fight with a vampire. Since you weren't around, we didn't know how to cure her. She's been sick for a long time… but she hasn't died yet. She's strong, after all. I think she'll live," Yusuke paused, before adding in uncertainty, "Probably."

"No way…" Kurama said in disbelieve, his eyes wide before they returned to their original shape. "You should've come straight to me," he scolded with a deep frown.

"Yeah, I know," Yusuke replied all too knowingly, before sparing a glance at the clock. "I've… gotta go now. I can't leave her by herself for too long."

Then, he grinned at Botan, who immediately smiled back. However, her smile soon felled as he told her, "I'll be expecting some kind of reward for showing you Kurama's memories, Botan. I don't want your blood—but something else instead. I'll leave the thinking to you, though, since I don't really like thinking."

Botan's mouth formed a pout, and he laughed. His laughter soon subsided though, when Kurama's surprised and angry yell reached his ears, "You did _what_?!"

He raised one black eyebrow at him, and watched in amusement as Kurama held a hand to his chest – as if he was having a heart attack, or he was afraid that his heart might come out.

"I-I can't believe you did that, Yusuke!" Kurama went on.

Yusuke once again laughed, this time harder at his half brother's reaction. "Hey! Don't blame me!" he raised his arms defensively, "Botan had a pathetic look on her face, so I couldn't help myself."

"Pathe—" Botan cut herself off, unwilling to continue, before roaring in anger, "Why I ought of—"

"Oookayy, I'll be going now," Yusuke laughingly excused himself after noticing that the animosity in the house was all directed towards him. He inwardly laughed, before making to leave through the window.

"Yusuke."

Kurama's voice stopped him, and he turned with a quizzical look. His half brother was sporting a look of remorse on his handsome features and looking into his eyes as he finished, "I'm sorry. For not talking to you in the face before I left… for not making any contact after all these years. I'm… really, terribly sorry about that."

Yusuke stared at him for awhile, his expression incomprehensible… and then, a toothy grin tugged at his lips. "Nah, don't worry. I'm not really that ticked off anymore." At the surprised expression on Kurama's face, he just gave him one final smile before turning around and saying, "See ya… bro."

"Yeah, you too," he heard Kurama say, "I'll visit you when I have the time."

His smile widening slightly at those promising words, Yusuke raised a hand and absent mindedly wave. "Yeah!" and with that, he jumped out of the apartment.

Kurama smiled, a sigh of relief escaping him. He thought the minute he saw Yusuke, he would receive a hard punch to the face, but that didn't happen. To be honest, he was glad things turned out as great as they did. The promise he made to Yusuke came into mind: Yes, he would visit, he decided. Perhaps sooner, or maybe later. It didn't matter, but he would.

He felt a tug at his sleeve, snapping him back into reality. Kurama turned his head and looked down at Botan who was sporting a frown on her face. His features soon reflected hers after seeing her expression, his brows furrowing as he turned around to fully face her. "What's wrong?"

Instead of answering, her face turned downwards. Seconds ticked by, but she remained unresponsive to his question. Confused, he wondered what was the matter with her—and then, he was reminded that she had seen his memories. The bewilderment was immediately replaced by worry and fear. He extended a hand to touch her shoulder, but she pulled away and he froze for a moment, before letting his hand fall to his side.

"Botan… do you hate me?"

"Why would I?" Botan finally spoke, though her voice was filled with fury, "I would never hate you! Was that… the reason you didn't want to tell me anything about your past? Because you were afraid I might—" she stopped herself, biting her lower lip harshly as if she couldn't say the word 'hate' again. She bit so hard that her mouth bled, and she could taste the salty and nauseating taste of blood in her mouth but she didn't mind about that at this point.

Kurama, finally understanding the reason of her initial silence, exhaled a sigh, before looking at her with regret, "I-I'm sorry," he managed to apologize, but she remained silent and he took that as a cue for him to continue. He swallowed a lump, before inhaling a sigh, and exhaling it again. He grabbed her hand in his with gentle force, ignoring the way she flinched at his touch and tried to pull her hand away.

"I didn't want you to know how awful I was. You're… you're my beloved mistress, and yes, I admit that I was a fool for thinking for one second that you might loathe me. But… I couldn't help it. I thought the minute you found out, you would push me away in disgust… You already know, right? I killed my own mother—and countless humans. You…"

She cut him short before he could utter another word, though her voice was unlike before and was much, much softer, "Yes, I know… and I don't care. That was in the past—and that will never change. I admit I don't agree with everything you did… but your past mistakes are what make you who you are now, Kurama. As hateful as it was, it was what brought us together… right now, at this moment."

She lifted her head, revealing the tears at the back of her eyes and the blood trickling down her chin. Kurama, despite being surprised at the sight, couldn't help but smile at her words. Happy, that was what he felt. Like a happy fool. She was right; if all those horrible things didn't happen, he might've not made the contract, and he might've not met her. If he hadn't killed his mother—if he hadn't done all those awful stuff, then he might still be stuck in that old mansion. He couldn't bear thinking how his life would be then.

He lifted her hand to his lips, darting out his tongue to lick her blood clean. Botan shivered at the feeling of his warm and wet tongue sliding across her skin, and watched as he pulled away. His emerald eyes stared back at her with joy, as he stated in a quiet voice, "I'm such an idiot."

"That you are," Botan found herself quickly retorting back, a smile tugging at her lips.

Kurama's smile visibly widened, and he intertwined their fingers together. Putting his hand at the side of her head, his smile felled as he slowly closed the distance between them… His hand instinctively gripped hers tighter, as he felt her hot breath on his lips. Closing his eyes, he smiled once again before crushing her lips against his. He then pulled back, his mouth turned upwards into a toothy, and meaningful grin as he stared into her wide and beautiful amethyst orbs.

"K-Kurama?" His name came out timidly as it passed her lips.

He didn't answer, and merely darted out his tongue, sliding the wet appendage across her chin before moving up to her lower lip, licking at her blood and tasting the sweet taste.

With that, his mouth quickly descended on hers again, silencing her startled gasp.


End file.
